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It is a chilly, grey morning in February in Athlone. Teachers arrive slowly from all around Ireland to meet here in the middle of the country, in the middle of the school year. For some the commute took a couple of hours, for others it was only a few minutes. Regardless, once we all arrive, we take a deep breath and drop our shoulders as we soak in the beautiful landscape at Glasson Lakehouse. We are surrounded by the green slopes of a golf course, a lake, and a resort-style pool. Inside feels warm and friendly with wooden walls and eclectic decorations that give off a log cabin vibe. The venue offers a pause and a change in the usual morning surroundings for a school teacher: the buzz of students chatting in the painted cinder block halls, bells and intercoms interjecting, fluorescent lights glaring. The teachers gather here for a day of professional development, which, in this scenario, translates to time and space for a pause in a retreat-like setting.

The goals of continuing professional development as outlined by the Government of Ireland are to give support that “empowers teachers and schools to provide the best possible education for all students” (gov.ie). To empower teachers is to provide opportunities for growth in a fluctuating space. Skills often have to be sharpened as new technologies are invented and as the student body grows and shifts. In an article that breaks down and redefines the word ‘empower,’ Leslie Ashcroft shares the value of what can be seen as a “buzz word” in education (1987, 142). Ashcroft notices that most definitions use the words “ability” or “capability” when referring to empowerment, therefore they define the word empowering as nurturing someone’s belief in their own capability (1987). The word nurturing is interesting because it suggests care, particularly self-care, so that growth can happen. Therefore, to provide the best possible education to students, teachers are being asked to not only empower students, but to care for themselves through further training.

In Scripture, the word empower is used to describe those people guided by the gifts of the Spirit: “Now there are varieties of gifts, but the same Spirit; and there are varieties of service, but the same Lord; and there are varieties of activities, but it is the same God who empowers them all in everyone” (1 Corinthians 12:4-6 ESV). The Holy Spirit provides the gifts of wisdom and knowledge (to name a few), which are accessible to all teachers. Even though the curriculum and pedagogies may differ, God empowers these spiritual gifts to be used by teachers. Therefore, Scripture invites teachers to call upon the Holy Spirit for the precious gift of wisdom and explore how to share these spirit-empowered gifts in the classroom. 

How might this look in professional development settings? For teacher training in certain subjects, it might look like providing space – for growth, for trial and error, for building confidence, for learning new skills or modes of teaching, and for reflecting on teaching style and a teacher’s development of pedagogy. In a podcast hosted by Chris Anderson (2018-present), Ken Robinson defines curriculum as what you teach and pedagogy as how you teach it. For Religious Education (RE) teachers in Ireland, the “what” is religion according to the National Council for Curriculum and Assessment (NCCA) guidelines, yet the “how” varies and is ultimately up to the teacher. SAOL Media by An Tobar Nua offers digital media as a pedagogy to teach the RE curriculum for Christianity. Each series (SAOL Sonas, which is primarily aimed at junior cycle students, and An Dara SAOL, aimed at senior cycle students) includes short films that reflect the aims and learning outcomes addressed in the curriculum, but are delivered in a fun and accessible way for teachers and students: digitally! In addition to the actual resource, teachers can avail of online training to help support them in the delivery of this material. We hope that this training leaves them feeling supported and ultimately, capable of sharing the material with their students. The goal of the training day in February 2025 was to support teachers in using this resource. However, by the end of that grey day in Athlone, it felt as if a spark had been lit, illuminating some realities for teachers.

The training day revealed that many RE teachers in Ireland do not feel seen, even by their own colleagues and sometimes even students’ parents. Some teachers remarked that RE as a subject does not have as much prevalence in the Irish secondary school as many other subjects. However, the importance of teaching RE in schools is clear for its benefits in building tolerance, wellbeing, and intercultural education (Smyth and Darmody 2011), (Niculescu and Norel 2013). RE teachers in Ireland have support networks available to them which include the Religious Education Support (RESS), Professional Development Service for Teachers (PDST), and the Religion Teachers’ Association Ireland (RTAI). Nevertheless, the acknowledgment of their worth as teachers, empowered with spiritual gifts, might not always be evident in their day-to-day experiences. 

That training day revealed the reality that RE teachers need to fill their cup by connecting with other RE teachers and nurturing their own wellbeing in a space where they are valued. When that is accomplished, the growth intended in empowerment can really take place. As a response to this learning, this year we are offering teachers a SAOL Wellbeing Day in the middle of the year, this time on a (more than likely grey) January the 29th, to hopefully light a spark or fan a flame for the rest of the school year. Want more information on where you can get tickets? Click here.

1 Corinthians 12:4-6. Bible Hub. (n.d.). https://biblegateway.com.

Anderson, C. (Host). (2018-present). Sir Ken Robinson (still) wants an education
revolution [Audio podcast]. The TED Interview.

Ashcroft, L. (1987). Defusing “empowering”: The what and the why. Language Arts,
64(2), 142–156. https://doi.org/10.58680/la198725494

Continuing professional development (CPD) for teachers. gov.ie. (n.d.).
https://www.gov.ie/en/department-of-education/services/continuing-professional-development-cpd-for-teachers

Niculescu, R. M., & Norel, M. (2013). Religious education an important dimension of human’s education.Procedia – Social and Behavioral Sciences, 93, 338–342. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.sbspro.2013.09.20

Religion Teachers’ Association Ireland. (n.d.). https://www.rtai.ie/

Religious education support. (n.d.). http://ress.ie/home/religious-education-support

Senior cycle religious education – curriculum. PDST. (n.d.). https://www.pdst.ie/post-primary/sc/religion/curriculum#powerpoint

Smyth, E., & Darmody, M. (n.d.). Religious Diversity and Schooling in Ireland. In Brill.
essay. Retrieved August 19, 2025, from https://brill.com/display/book/edcoll/9789460914751/BP000009.xml.