Gary Meers, Ed.D.

About me

I am an Education Advisor/Consultant for MaxKnowledge. I write courses that assist in the professional development of career college instructors. These courses range in content from the introductory level to advanced instructional development. I started my teaching career as an instructional technology teacher on the high school level, completed graduate school and then moved into higher education. I spent many years in the area of teacher training at the University of Nebraska. While at the University of Nebraska I stared working with career college instructors to improve their instructional delivery skills. As a result of these experiences I have been a consultant to career colleges throughout the United States and a number of foreign countries.

Activity

Gary Meers, Ed.D.

Discussion Comment

Re: Effective Retention Strategies

Daniel, Student success is why instructors keep coming back to the classroom. Love it when the light bulb comes on and you know they "got it". Gary Gary Meers, Ed.D.

Gary Meers, Ed.D.

Discussion Comment

Strategies for Keeping Students Engaged in Learning

Nancy, Good strategy to follow as you are keeping them engaged in a variety of ways and interactions. This is how it should be with your content sharing. Gary Gary Meers, Ed.D.

Gary Meers, Ed.D.

Discussion Comment

Offering Varied Instructional Delivery

Renee, Good advice for all instructors to follow. Students like change of pace and variety in their instructional delivery so we need to bring both into the classroom so we can keep our students engaged. Gary Gary Meers, Ed.D.

Gary Meers, Ed.D.

Discussion Comment

The Learning Environment Effect

Corean, The environment is a key part of the total education picture. We need to find a comfortable setting for our students so they can focus on the course. Gary Gary Meers, Ed.D.

Gary Meers, Ed.D.

Discussion Comment

Comprehensive Planning for Instructional Success

Nancy, Well said because a lot of the field that we prepare our students to enter are based on professional experience, expertise and judgement. The goal we need to have is to help them develop their skills in the judgement area so they can be effective and efficient problem solvers. Gary Gary Meers, Ed.D.

Gary Meers, Ed.D.

Discussion Comment

Your Instructional Style

Corean, I think you will like the results you get from this method. I wish you much success with it. Gary Gary Meers, Ed.D.

Gary Meers, Ed.D.

Discussion Comment

Instructors as Role Models

Nancy, This is such an important point. Thank you for this reminder. We need to make sure our students understand this as they move through their professional training. They need to make sure and be careful of anything they say or post so they will not be haunted by it later. Gary Gary Meers, Ed.D.

Gary Meers, Ed.D.

Discussion Comment

Accommodating Learner Preferences

Viviana, I use pretests in my courses to establish a baseline on my current students much like what you are doing. In addition, in support of your comments about test taking I like for them to take a test at the beginning of the course that is low stakes, in this case no grade. That way for returning students they can get past the fear of test taking and start to settle back into being students and see that they can in fact be successful in the course. Gary Gary Meers, Ed.D.

Gary Meers, Ed.D.

Discussion Comment

Making Your Expectations Clear

Viviana, I use a similar approach as do many instructors. This puts in front of students a sheet of accountability. With them signing the sheet they are taking responsibility for their future and career development. This call into account their self discipline and personal effort. Gary Gary Meers, Ed.D.

Gary Meers, Ed.D.

Discussion Comment

Defining Instructional Professionalism

Viviana, This is how you show your students you are their learning leader. You admit not knowing the answers to all the questions asked, which is true for all of us, and then you come up with the answers after some effort and research. This is a model that your students will learn to follow as well once they see how it results in answers. Gary Gary Meers, Ed.D.

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