I am uploading this feedback from Donna Allender as per her request. It is attached in the original form as it was sent to me.

Laurie

Dear Laurie (and Valerie), I have enjoyed reading your narrative self-study with your emphasis on collaboration and the value of self-study as tools for the development of emerging teacher-educator researchers. I also enjoyed the quality of your writing, your ability to communicate clearly and to engage critically and creatively with the ideas of others.

The only addition I would like to see to your paper before recommending it for publication, in the Educational Journal of Living Theories, is your engagement with ideas from the general idea of Living Educational Theory to show the relationship between your narrative self-study and the creation of your particular living-educational-theories.

For example, you mention the pioneering work in self-study of the Arizona Group.

The Summer 1995 issue <22(3) >of Teacher Education Quarterly had the theme Self-Study and Living Educational Theory. One of the weaknesses pointed out in the writings of the Arizona Group in this issue was the lack of evidence of educational influences in the learning of students. You could point out how you have met this criticism in your account.

Not all narrative self-studies are living-educational-theories. I would find it helpful in recommending your paper for publication in EJOLTS if you would add a few paragraphs, related to the statements on the EJOLTS homepage at http://ejolts.net
to explain to your readers how your narrative self-study is making a contribution to Living Educational Theory research:

"EJOLTS is committed to publishing the accounts of practitioner-researchers from a wide range of global, social, cultural and professional contexts that explain their educational influences in their own learning, in the learning of others and in the learning of social formations. The journal focuses on personal journeys and collaborative pathways that explain educational influences in learning in terms of values, skills and understandings that the researcher believes carries hope for the future of humanity and their own.

The values we are thinking of are ontological in the sense that they are used to give meaning and purpose to the lives of individuals. We are particularly interested in publishing explanations that connect a flow of life-affirming energy with living values such as love, freedom, justice, compassion, courage, care and democratic evaluation.

We invite you to submit articles for publication in Educational Journal of Living Theories, a web-based international refereed journal. Journal articles will be published two times a year. We welcome submissions from all living theorists who understand their living theories as their explanations for their educational influences in their own learning, the learning of others and the learning of social formations."

If you google Living Educational Theory I think that you will find some references that might help you to connect your narrative self-study, to your living-educational-theory.

I'm not suggesting major amendments before recommending publication. I'm asking to see in your paper the connection you are making between a narrative self-study and living-educational-theory.

Hoping that this is helpful.