The reality of paramedicine can cause students emotional distress, especially if this tests their values or beliefs. Therefore, educating students to be resilient and prepared for unpredictable, distressing events should be considered. The need to increase professional longevity in paramedicine has shifted employers' focus from road readiness to road resilience, which presents a complex challenge for educators. This article is the first of a series to discuss the use of supporting sciences to build road resilience in undergraduate paramedicine programmes. A review of the literature on paramedic education demonstrates there is new knowledge, based on experience in clinical practice and research, that paramedic educators can draw on to develop their discipline. Paramedics with postgraduate qualifications can shape the future of their professional discipline when their research produces a new discourse that informs a curriculum which can meet contemporary challenges. Discussion of a fictional case study illustrates how an emotional crisis could provide a platform for reflective learning and make a student more effective as a paramedic, and the educational environment needed to facilitate this.