EECERA Narratives #4 – Tracy McElheron
Posted 11th March 2026
By Tracy McElheron
Maynooth University, Ireland
EECERA Narrative – How we grow together
I think I need to provide some personal context to really convey the significance of attending EECERA 2025 for me this summer. Without turning this into an online CV, it’s important to state that I have been in practice, working directly with young children for over 25 years. Over the past six years, I have also dipped my toe into the waters of academia, teaching, researching and writing. I have been invested in both practice and academia but can often feel the draw of the other when I’m involved in each. This can sometimes lead to a sense of not quite truly fitting in to either area. And then I attended EECERA and things changed.
I must have been asked whether I had attended EECERA at least a dozen times over the past couple of years. Obviously, going is considered a milestone in the career of anyone involved in Early Childhood Education and Care, so this year I decided to reach that milestone and submitted two abstracts (one with my good friend and esteemed colleague, Georga Dowling), which were thankfully both accepted. Even after hearing so many extol the virtues of attending EECERA, going to Bratislava was a revelation, both in terms of the place and the conference. The city was warm and welcoming, as was the conference. Attending the conference provided me with so many opportunities to engage with such an array of experts in the field of Early Childhood, whether that was keynote speakers, visiting researchers or local practitioners. Whilst in Bratislava, I found that I had an interest in whatever I heard or saw, was deepening my understanding of significant elements of Early Childhood but also I realized that I had something to contribute beyond the confines of my own presentations. For me, that was what I gained most from attending EECERA – a solid sense of my own expertise. Yes, I got to listen to individuals whose work I have respected for so long, gaining a deeper understanding from engaging with them in person, but those individuals also valued my thoughts and experience. The dialogues in which I was involved enabled me to connect the areas in which I work in meaningful ways. This helped me to recognize that working in both academia and in the field provides me with unique opportunities to translate theory into practice and also to bring tacit knowledge and experience to academia.
EECERA 2025 was a place that offered me acceptance, appreciation, and collaboration, so the conference didn’t end on Thursday, August 28th, for me. It’s still ongoing. Since attending, I have forged new partnerships and been invited to take part in new collaborations. At the risk of using a corny and well-worn cliché, I feel I’ve ‘found my tribe’.
Any views expressed in this post are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the official stance of their affiliated institution or EECERA.
Related links:
EECERA Narratives #1 – Michel Vandenbroeck
EECERA Narratives #2 – Gerry Mulhearn
EECERA Narratives #3 – Valerie Sollars