I am high school chemistry and general science teacher, currently living and working in Inverness, the largest town in the beautiful Highlands of Scotland. I teach students aged 11 -18 years old and I am also involved in extra curricular activities, including music and outdoor activities. It is very difficult to live up here in the Highlands without at least trying walking, hiking, camping, canoeing and, for a few months a year, skiing! Most of the time I am accompanied on my adventures with Meg, my 6 year old Boxer cross.

My biggest passion is music; I have been playing trumpet and cornet for 26 years now and play with Highland Brass (http://highlandbrass.org/), a newly formed British style brass band, and the Rooty Ma Toot Big Band (https://www.facebook.com/rooty.matoot), a 17 piece big band. The members of both bands have quickly become like a second family to me and we regularly undertake concerts, competitions, fundraising and social events.

I am studying with the UK's distance university, The Open University, for a Bachelor of Arts in Humanities, but due to work commitments have taken a year off. With a little more time on my hands, I realised I was missing the studying! I found myself on Coursera.org and before I knew it I was taking a Behavioural Genetics course! My thirst for psychology was born! Now I am looking to use on-line courses to improve my professional development, perhaps allowing me to move into a more student support orientated career, but also simply for personal interest and development.