A study purporting to show that non-religious teachers in Church-run post-primary schools are ‘suppressing’ their beliefs to preserve their career prospects is based on a tiny sample of just 15 people.

The cross-Border study by Dr Catherine Stapleton of Mary Immaculate College and Dr James Nelson of Queen’s University Belfast interviewed five teachers in the North and ten in the South.

The researchers had difficulty recruiting people to the study, which admits: “Initially, a number of established humanist organisations and social network groups were contacted. However, it proved challenging to find participants and the researchers asked the organisations to re-advertise.”

Snowball sampling was utilised, whereby participants were asked at interview if they had colleagues who may be interested in participating in the research.

The participants, who described themselves as non-religious, said they felt unprepared for the religious expectations they encountered in schools and the assumption that they would uphold the ethos of the school. This, they claimed, caused a range of ethical and professional dilemmas.