ABSTRACT
This introduction presents an overview of the key concepts discussed in the subsequent chapters of this book. The book focuses upon narrative and life history within the context of International Education. It explores three extensive periods of field work in South Africa, Bangladesh and Mauritius and describes three groups of people who constitute the major 'actors' of education and development, namely teachers, administrators and school students. The book discusses a theoretical excursion into reconceptualising the role of narrative and life history in generating knowledge and knowing about some of the enduring issues facing international education. It focuses upon the experience of using narrative and biographical approaches in three different national settings. The book describes the methodological narrative–the how question–discussing the opportunities and challenges in carrying out biographical research in non-Western settings. It discusses the national, educational and cultural narratives of the particular setting and presents the life history narratives of the participants.
