Teaching vocation or religious vocation: examining the changing identity of Irish teaching sisters c.1940–1970, an oral history approach

Abstract

This article discusses oral history sources that give insight into how a specific group of teaching sisters (also known as nuns or women religious) reflect on their primary identity as vowed women, and their professional identity as teachers. Their identity was bound up with the fact that they had taken religious vows, and entered a congregation with a clear charism or identity of its own, and they each had their own understanding of vocation. The article also considers the different ways in which they became involved in education; some did not chose to become teachers, while others had a clear desire to teach. The article also discusses the impact of the changes that followed the Second Vatican Council, and notes how these changes impacted upon some of the women in this study.