Hi, my name is Karen Irvine, and I teach Business at Lafayette County C-1 in Higginsville. I love teaching business and technology all day long because I also learn new things. I obtained my Business Administration degree from CMSU. I worked in insurance and real estate, and then chose to stay home and raise my two sons while doing books for our family businesses. As the boys got older, I went back and picked up the education classes that I needed to be certified to teach business (I'm also certified to teach MS Math and Elementary). I was on staff at Concordia for four years. I taught business at Crest Ridge for two years, and this is my fourth year at Higginsville, which is my hometown .The Educational Technology masters program was a very good decision for me because it is a great supplement to my Business Education certification. I have already used several things in my classes and plan to implement more. This semester I’m teaching Multimedia, which gives me a class that I like to share the newest technology with, so I’m expecting to pass along some things to my students as I learn them in this course.
I am definitely a lifelong learner. I enjoy teaching, as well as learning. It is stressful for me to take a class and teach at the same time because I spend a lot of my personal time working on both. In fact, I've been told by my colleagues and friends that I spend too much time on both! I spend a lot of time reading about technology and reading to figure out how to do something; therefore, I don’t have the time to read for pleasure like I did years ago. I don’t remember the last book that I read, but the one that I will always remember is Hawaii by James Michener. Even though it is fiction, it is based on how the islands and culture evolved.
I picked up some used books last summer (including Hawaii) that when I finish my masters, I’d like to read for pleasure again. I know that many of our students like to read and carry books to class to read if they finish their work earlier than the others. I also have several friends that read for pleasure. I would say yes, people still read.
I find it wonderful that you allow the students to read after their work has been completed. I think I would have talked less if this was an option for me in high school or even grade school for that matter.
ReplyDeleteThanks for sharing!! I know exactly how you feel. I was working full-time, just had a baby and doing my graduate program. I graduated in two years time and I spent a lot of nights going to bed past midnight and waking up early to take the kidlet to daycare and then work. Technology is difficult to be actively in without doing a lot of reading and playing with the different pieces you're interested in.
ReplyDeleteI love that you let your kids bring a book and read after they're done. I think reading is important. I started out reading for pleasure and after I got older and wiser (ha!) I started reading more non-fiction.
Take care and looking forward to learning with you this semester!!
I know it's so hard to find time for reading books for fun. I miss that a lot. You sound like you'll be a whiz with this class and shouldn't have a hard time at all! Good luck!
ReplyDeleteKAREN!!!
ReplyDeleteYay! We worked so well together the last time we had a class, I can't wait to see what this semester holds! I love your background image, I almost chose that one but it didn't quite fit for me.
Hawaii sounds like a cool book. I always find it interesting learning about other places and cultures. Have you ever been there? I was there once and it was so beautiful.
ReplyDeletehave you ever been to Hawaii. Its very nice. Depending on where you go, there are some places that still have that old culture. I rean into a couple of villages YEARS ago while in Oahu..
ReplyDeleteWell I think some of us are in the same boat when it comes to reading! It is definitely something that you have to make time for! When I finally feel that I have time to read (usually right before bed) I am too tired to keep my eyes open longer than 5 minutes! However, reading online articles has become a hobby of mine because it is quick and easily accessible; I am sitting in front of a computer most of the day!
ReplyDeleteI have never been to Hawaii, but I do plan to get there some day. Again, it is a great book.
ReplyDelete