One Woman's Epistemology: A Novel Approach to Subjective Knowing and Relational Education

Purpose and Intent: To show the epistemological significance of narrative as a cohesive method to describe experience, learning, and understanding. To trace the personal development of integrated knowledge through relational integration, and to use experiential narrative as a vehicle conveying the importance and influence of the personal on the social construction of political and historical methods of education. Methodology: A descriptive autobiographical narrative tells the story of my educational journey within a community of relationships with others. This narrative style of writing illustrates an alternative approach to the processes of learning, thinking, and knowing. The story itself is the method. Conclusions: 1) That learning, thinking and knowing are based in the primacy of relationship. 2) This occurs first in the interpersonal relationship with others, second in the relationship with Self, and thirdly in the relationship with subject or material. 3) That experience is the veil through which we translate understanding relationship. 4) Stories are the way we make sense and meaning of our experience.