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Irish Times
09-05-2025
- Politics
- Irish Times
No consensus among teachers on religion in classrooms
Sir, – The Irish National Teachers' Organisation (INTO) takes great pride in our long-standing commitment to equality and inclusion in our schools. We are also proud of our commitment to respectful debate and democratic structures. We note Paddy Monahan's comments ('T eachers are clear they want religion out of the classroom ', Opinion, Thursday, May 9th), and wish to offer some important context and clarification. At our 157th annual congress, 850 democratically elected delegates from INTO branches across the island of Ireland adopted the 13 recommendations of our Taskforce on the Future of Primary School Patronage. These recommendations represent the official position of the union. It is, however, noteworthy that a motion calling for the removal of single-faith education from the school day in State-funded schools, debated at congress and addressed by members of Education Equality, was defeated by a significant margin. INTO has undertaken extensive research and engagement on religious education and school patronage with members in recent years. These exercises have consistently shown that views are varied and deeply held. Our membership is divided on some aspects of this complex issue. Recognising this, we have worked to find a common ground, one that acknowledges those divisions and reflects the union's democratic structures. READ MORE It is inevitable that some on both sides of such a sensitive debate will be dissatisfied, but what we now have is a union policy position that portrays the opinions of the majority of our congress delegates, who are chosen to represent our 55,000 members. We will continue to work with our members, who are doing tremendous work in a sensitive area and doing their best for the children they teach. – Yours, etc, JOHN BOYLE, General Secretary, Irish National Teachers' Organisation.
Irish Examiner
08-05-2025
- General
- Irish Examiner
The State is completely failing non-Catholic families
Look around you this month and you may see entire classes of young schoolchildren dressed in little suits and white dresses. It is a familiar sight around Ireland at this time of year. Who could begrudge these kids their day in the sun? Haven't they spent months preparing for their big day? Haven't their parents also dressed up for the occasion, and aren't they beaming with pride? Isn't First Holy Communion just an Irish tradition? Freedom of religion is a human right but herein lies a peculiar irony. Many parents getting ready for their child's communion give little thought to the Eucharist. They see the day merely as a cultural milestone. But by having their child take part they are, in effect, practising religion – even if they are only dimly conscious of doing so. It is precisely those families who avoid this rite altogether that are unable to overlook its religious significance. Under Article 44.2.4 of the Constitution, every child in Ireland has a clearly enshrined right not to attend religious instruction. Attempting to exercise this right comes at a cost, however. Non-religious and minority faith families are confronted with daily reminders that they fall outside the norm. Approximately 95% of Ireland's primary schools are patronised by religious bodies. Over 88% are run by the Catholic Church. It is a strange way to run an education system. Most schools treat faith formation and sacramental preparation as an intrinsic part of the daily curriculum, often paying scant regard to the wishes and lawful preferences of those holding different beliefs. 'Opting out' can be an alienating and upsetting experience for many children, who invariably find themselves treated differently from their classmates. It is also completely ineffective as they absorb the lessons and prayers regardless. Religion is woven so closely into the school day that parents often choose to keep their children at home, particularly as sacramental preparation ramps up. If you apply for a job, you will not be asked about your beliefs at interview. If you get married, you can choose the ceremony you prefer, whether religious or non-religious. If you have children, you can freely decide whether you want to baptise them. A few years later, however, you will leave these freedoms at the school gate. The protections that we otherwise take for granted are systematically denied us when our children start school. Our education system is increasingly disconnected from Irish society. Catholicism has fallen as a percentage of the population in every census since the 1960s. The last 40 years have seen the legalisation of contraception, divorce, same-sex marriage and abortion. Over 40% of babies are now born outside wedlock. Just 31% of marriages were celebrated in a Catholic church in 2024, while 40% were non-religious. It's an odd situation, and teachers are finally beginning to make their voices heard. Following a motion passed at Congress in 2024, the INTO undertook a representative national survey of teachers on school patronage, the teaching of religion, and sacramental preparation. The results, which have just been released, were unsurprising: Most teachers do not believe that faith formation should take place in primary schools, most do not teach religion willingly, and most believe that our schools should have secular patrons. When it comes to communions and confirmations, the INTO's taskforce findings were particularly stark. 77% of teachers believe that responsibility for sacramental preparation should rest with the family or the parish, 18% believe that responsibility should rest with the family, parish, and school, and only 4% believe that responsibility should rest with schools alone. The INTO is now explicitly calling for the repeal of Section 37.1 of the Employment Equality Act, which legalises discrimination against teachers on religious grounds and allows schools to insist on staff holding a Catholic Certificate in Religious Studies to secure a permanent contract. Formed in 2015, Education Equality is a voluntary human rights advocacy group that campaigns for equality for all children in our schools, regardless of their religion or belief background. In 2016, we met former minister for education Richard Bruton. In 2018, the Education (Admission to Schools) Act largely outlawed the use of religion as an admissions criterion. In October 2024, we met the previous minister for education, Norma Foley. Our new Education Equality Ireland Instagram account has gained huge traction. Slow pace of reform Yet even as our movement grows, so does the litany of Government failures to respond meaningfully to this issue. The school divestment process has made negligible progress since it emerged from the Forum on Patronage and Pluralism in the Primary Sector in 2012. Government commitments to a target of reaching 400 multidenominational schools by 2030 were quietly dropped from the programme for government in January. In 2020, the previous government announced plans to hold a citizens' assembly on the future of education. Predictably, it never took place and now appears to have been abandoned. In September 2023, the Department of Education announced its intention to undertake a national parental survey on school patronage. As reported by RTÉ at the time, Secretary General Bernie McNally said that parents would complete the survey "in the privacy of their own homes", adding that they would have access to "accurate" information in advance. David Graham: 'Non-religious and minority faith families are confronted with daily reminders that they fall outside the norm.' Subsequent commitments indicated that the survey would take place during the 2024-2025 academic year. Parents are still waiting. Even recent, modest legislative provisions have proven ineffective. Section 62(7)(n) of the 2018 admissions legislation includes a specific requirement that school enrolment policies must include details of the school's arrangements for any students who do not wish to attend religious instruction. Most schools ignore this legislation, instead directing parents to arrange a meeting with the principal. The new minister for education Helen McEntee has now announced that she would establish a national convention on education "to hear and to understand people's thoughts, hopes and aspiration for the education system of the future". The convention is unlikely to happen for some time, and its terms of reference remain unclear. Opt in rather than opt out? So, what should be done? Education Equality believes that we need to move religious instruction outside the school day. Instead of making families opt out, we should ask them if they want to opt in. It's a simple, cost-effective solution that would make faith formation more meaningful for those attending, while upholding the rights of those who do not share these beliefs. So no, this is not about begrudgery or denying Irish schoolchildren their day in the sun. It's about equality, inclusion and respect for human rights. And it's about removing systemic discrimination from our education system for children and teachers alike. Ireland has changed. Our schools must too. David Graham is Communications Officer with Education Equality
Irish Times
08-05-2025
- General
- Irish Times
Teachers want religion out of the classroom. Here's what has to happen next
Religious faith formation plays a major role in Ireland's taxpayer-funded primary education system. This is highly unusual in a democratic country, and teachers are making their voices heard on the issue. About 90 per cent of primary schools are controlled by the Catholic Church. Sacramental preparation for Confession, Communion and Confirmation presents challenges for teachers, especially those who don't share the faith. A recent survey by the Irish National Teachers' Organisation (INTO) uncovered some interesting findings and related recommendations from an INTO taskforce, which have given the union plenty of homework. The survey asked 34 questions related to religion in schools. Seventy seven per cent of respondent teachers said schools should have no responsibility at all for preparing children for the sacraments, while only 4 per cent thought it should be left to the primary school. A vast amount of class time is dedicated to sacramental preparation, with knock-on effects for other subjects in an already overloaded curriculum. Communion and Confirmation practice eat into the school day for months in advance, ramping up as the day approaches. [ Ireland an 'outlier' in requiring religious certs to teach in most primary schools Opens in new window ] But for many teachers there is also the gnawing issue of the children who are left out. Ireland has changed as a society – children come from a wide variety of backgrounds. In so many ways, our schools are places of inclusiveness and understanding, but this goes out the window when it comes to religion. Children from outside the shrinking Catholic mainstream can find themselves excluded for lengthy periods, or forced to set their own identity aside. READ MORE With no guidance from the Minister for Education, Helen McEntee, few – if any – schools have found a satisfactory way to cater for the many children not partaking in sacramental preparation. These children tend to find themselves herded together and assigned pointless busywork for what adds up to a huge amount of class time. Then on the 'big day' they sit on the sidelines and watch as their peers get dressed up and enjoy their celebration. Many teachers feel conflicted about their role in this institutionalised othering. The INTO taskforce has recommended that the union work to move sacramental preparation outside the school day. However, the recommendation that it 'engage with' religious patrons in this regard seems like it is starting in the wrong direction. Shouldn't fundamental decisions on the curriculum primarily involve the Minister for Education? Elsewhere, some of the taskforce's recommendations don't appear to me to make much sense. On the simple question of 'should faith formation take place in primary schools?' 33 per cent of respondents said they 'teach religion willingly'; 19.5 per cent said they would prefer not to have to teach it and 19 per cent said 'I would teach a broad religious education willingly', but would prefer not to have to teach it in a particular faith. Yet, other than the issue of sacramental preparation, faith formation in schools seems to have been largely ignored by the taskforce. In almost 90 per cent of schools, the Catholic faith is supposed to be taught for 30 minutes every single day. This is more time than history, geography and science combined. Then there are daily prayers, trips to church, clerical visits and more. As with sacramental preparation, the Department of Education has provided no guidance on how schools should accommodate non-Catholic children during these times. In truth, in most schools, the 'opted-out' children just sit there – sometimes colouring a picture, sometimes doodling with a puzzle book, listening to every word regardless – segregated, othered and marked as different. The obvious answer, surely, is simply to move faith formation outside the school day and let families 'opt-in', should they wish. This is an inclusive solution that could not offend anyone. The INTO taskforce has inexplicably ignored the responses on faith formation in the survey and based most of its recommendations on the failed policy of divestment. There are obvious reasons divestment, pursued by successive governments since 2012, has failed. First, it is logistically and financially impossible to build a school system where all families will have access to a school that aligns with their religious outlook. Second, and more importantly, building an entire balkanised school system on a foundation of religious difference among children is patently wrong. Ireland is forging a lonely path internationally with this policy. The teaching profession in Ireland is monocultural – it reflects neither the diversity of Irish society nor our own classrooms. The taskforce's recommendation that the union must 'campaign and advocate for the removal of section 37.1 of the Employment Equality Act in its entirety' is welcome. This regrettable piece of legislation creates the vague, indefinable transgression of 'undermining the religious ethos' of a school. Moreover, teachers can face any 'action which is reasonably necessary' as a consequence. What does this mean? Sanction, loss of promotion prospects and dismissal? Understandably, most teachers don't want to find out. The result is a compliant workforce afraid to do anything that might fall foul of this obscure, discriminatory law. The chilling effect on teachers acts as an obvious barrier to entry to the profession at a time of catastrophic teacher shortages. 'Endeavouring' and 'campaigning' are not enough. The union must prioritise ending sacramental preparation in schools and the repeal of section 37.1. It needs to abandon the failed policy of divestment and focus on moving faith formation outside school hours: a real, practical change that will benefit teachers and children alike. Paddy Monahan is a teacher, Social Democrats councillor and policy officer with Education Equality
Irish Times
30-04-2025
- Politics
- Irish Times
Ireland an ‘outlier' in requiring religious certs to teach in most primary schools
Only countries such as Saudi Arabia *, Iran and Pakistan share the requirement of Irish primary schools for teachers to have religious certificates in order to teach in most settings, a teachers' conference has heard. Almost 90 per cent of primary schools are under Catholic patronage where a religious certificate is required to teach due to the way religion is integrated into the curriculum. At the Irish National Teachers' Organisation 's (INTO) annual congress in Galway on Wednesday, primary teachers backed calls for the removal of the Catholic certificate requirement. They also supported calls for the repeal of legislation which permits schools to discriminate in hiring on the basis of religion. READ MORE Jason Kenny, a Dublin-based teacher, speaking at the annual congress of the Irish National Teachers' Organisation in Galway. Photograph: Moya Nolan Jason Kenny, a Dublin-based teacher, told the congress that Ireland was an outlier internationally. 'I looked at other western democracies – countries like the UK, the United States, Australia, South Africa, and New Zealand. All of them maintain secular public-school systems. Even in Catholic-majority countries like Spain and Italy, the vast majority of public schools are secular,' he said. [ Pope Francis's remains moved to St Peter's Basilica as public begin to pay respects Opens in new window ] 'Religious certificates are only needed to teach religion – not every subject. Ireland is the outlier. Who else requires religious certificate to teach in the majority of public primary schools? 'Countries like Saudi Arabia*, Iran, Pakistan, Malaysia, Egypt and UAE – many of these are countries without a clear separation of church and state; some are not democracies at all.' Alana Wilhem, a primary teacher based in Blessington, Co Wicklow, spoke of having to 'hide her non-religious identity' until recently. 'I taught in my school for 14 years. My colleagues are kind, but genuine belonging means being able to share who you truly are without fear,' she said. 'Only recently ... did I speak openly, a moment that was both terrifying and necessary. I knew I might be risking future employment opportunities, but I'm an adult and I can carry that weight.' Alana Wilhelm speaking at the annual congress of the Irish National Teachers' Organisation in Galway. Photograph: Moya Nolan She also spoke of how one of her children – who attends a local Catholic school – was upset when she had ashes placed on her forehead against her wishes. 'She was upset and afterwards the teacher tried to wash them off. These moments of othering happen every day through ritual, routine and message that imply 'you don't belong',' Ms Wilhem said. 'We cannot champion inclusion while reserving systems of exclusion.' Delegates adopted the recommendations of a union taskforce on the future of religious education and primary school patronage, which calls for an acceleration of divestment of religious schools and a more 'equitable, inclusive and modern' education system. Some delegates, however, spoke in favour of maintaining choice within the education system rather than moving towards a secular system. Hazel McWey, a school principal in Co Carlow, said she was a practising Catholic and that parents were entitled to school choice under the Constitution. 'We don't need to throw the baby out with the Baptismal water,' she said. Helena Teehan, a teacher from Enniscorthy, Co Wexford, said Catholic schools were very accommodating and made 'wonderful efforts' to include all children, regardless of their background. She said the religion of teachers did not come up in the staffroom and that having choice in the system helped to vindicate parents' rights. The embassy of Saudi Arabia has since clarified that the Saudi ministry of education 'does not require teachers in primary schools to hold any religious certificates'.
RTÉ News
23-04-2025
- Politics
- RTÉ News
INTO delegates debate role of Catholic Church in schools
Primary school teachers want a school system that is "inclusive, equitable and reflective of the diversity of our pupils", according to INTO General Secretary John Boyle. Mr Boyle made the comments at the end of a motion debating the role of the Catholic Church in schools. Delegates from the Irish National Teachers' Organisation turned out in force early this morning for the debate. Speakers spoke of having to hide their non-religious identities in their schools, of children having ashes placed on their foreheads against their will and a primary school principal was among those who criticised legislation that she said was "compelling LGBTQ+ teachers to hide their true selves". The union adopted recommendations that will see it campaign for the accelerated divestment of schools from Catholic patronage and the repeal of legislation which allows schools to discriminate against teachers and other staff on religious grounds. The INTO will also campaign against the requirement of a religious certificate as a condition of employment in Catholic schools, which today's resolution describes as "a discriminatory barrier to employment, limiting access based on religious grounds". The recommendations build on a motion passed by delegates last year which instructed the union to engage with the Catholic bishops for the removal of the certificate requirement. Part of today's motion was rejected by delegates with speakers criticising its call to remove single faith formation entirely from the school day as "going too far". "The purpose of this motion is not to attack religion but to defend the constitution and human rights of all teachers and pupils in our schools," teacher Anna Hurley from west Cork told delegates. Delegate Alana Wilhelm said her youngest child had had ashes put on her forehead against her will at school. "Moments of 'othering' are happening every day," she said, adding, "We cannot champion inclusion unless we challenge exclusion". Criticising section 37.1 of the Employment Equality Act which allows schools to discriminate on the basis of religion, a principal of a Catholic school in Limerick city Tracie Tobin said her school catered to children from 72 countries, with 67 languages, and 16 different religions. "We celebrate all religions and cultures yet there are LGBTQ+ teachers in our schools who because of section 37.1 feel compelled to hide their true selves," she said. "On the whole I was in support of most of the motion", said teacher Caroline Moore from Cavan. "I do think sacramental preparation should be removed, that that should be something that should be done outside the school, but there should still be the choice for parents to choose to send their child to a school of their faith," she added. The INTO conference will conclude later. Preparation for sacraments should happen outside of classroom - teachers The debate on the motion comes as a majority of primary school teachers, who responded to a survey, believe families or parishes should be responsible for preparing children for the sacraments of communion and confirmation. A survey of teachers carried out by the INTO has found just 4% feel the responsibility should lie with schools. The same survey found that two-thirds of respondents believe primary schools should be secular as opposed to having religious patrons. 1,049 teachers responded to a detailed questionnaire that was sent by the union to a random sample of 5,000 members who are representative of the union as a whole in terms of age, gender, urban or rural and other factors. Publishing the findings, the INTO said the survey "provides a valid dataset for analysing the views and opinions of INTO members regarding religious education and school patronage". The survey findings are supported by recommendations from a taskforce that were endorsed in their entirety by INTO delegates at their annual congress in Galway yesterday. The taskforce on the future of school patronage was established at the request of delegates at last year's gathering. In the survey, 57% of respondents said religious instruction should not take place in primary schools. This rose to two-thirds among teachers under the age of 44. The survey reveals a preference consistent across all age groups for schools to be run by secular patrons, with 63% favouring this option. Currently, the vast majority of primary schools are run by the churches, with the Catholic Church in charge of nine out of ten primary schools in the State. At last year's INTO congress, members mandated the union to conduct this research and to establish the taskforce. In its recommendations the taskforce calls for an acceleration of the school divestment process; for the repeal of legislation that allows for teachers to be discriminated against on the basis of their religious or non religious beliefs; and for the union to engage with the Catholic bishops to seek "a more flexible approach" to the requirement for a religious certificate to teach in Catholic schools. It also calls for the removal of sacramental preparation from the core school day. "Repealing this legislation, and the removal of sacramental preparation from schools are two of the most pressing issues for teachers and they are the most immediately achievable," said Anna Hurley, a West Cork teacher, INTO delegate, and member of the taskforce. "They can be done at no cost and they will help ensure an inclusive learning and teaching environment for all pupils and teachers of all faith backgrounds and none," she said. Teaching religion survey 33% of survey respondents said they taught religion willingly. 20% said they would prefer if they did not have to teach religion, and an additional 19% said they would be happy to teach a broad religious programme but would prefer not to instruct in only one particular faith. An overwhelming majority of respondents (87%) indicated there are pupils attending their denominational schools who are not of the faith of the school, and almost the same level (83%) agreed that children in all schools should be taught about other religions. The survey findings and the fact that delegates adopted the recommendations of the taskforce together indicate a strong desire for modernisation and change among the primary teacher workforce.
