Our Educational Journeys

Abstract

In this chapter, the authors present their educational journeys, from early childhood to the transition into working in teacher education. This begins the discussion of how early life experiences can have a profound impact on the work of teacher educators. They trace back to significant events in their lives, including family history, early educational experiences, their work as school teachers and their respective pathways into academia through study and work. Recurring themes from early life experiences are identified and discussed in terms of what implications these have for the authors' work as teacher educators. These include family bereavement and growing up in a single-parent family; family commitment to education; loneliness and negative self-imaging; turning to writing and literature, especially through the study of English and History; being the first in the family to go to university ; and success as teachers often tempered with feelings of being an imposter.