166 Analysis of the in-depth interviews conducted showed that it was an obvious choice for teachers to opt for an OPPS and that they basically could not imagine working at a school that is not orthodox Protestant. The teachers showed both explicit and implicit motives for doing so, which all mostly had to do with the mono-religious character of OPPSs. Overall, three different interests could be distilled: (1) That teachers experience education as inseparable from Christian socialisation. They could not imagine teaching at a school without nurturing pupils’ faith development, and in their opinion, Christian socialisation should be intertwined with all education. In relation to this, some of the participants experienced that God himself called them to educate children, especially into the Christian faith. Meanwhile, some of the teachers also wondered whether it might be a calling for them as Christians to work at a mainline Protestant or public school; (2) That teachers feel comfortable in the school’s religious climate, in the sense that the school’s religious climate more or less corresponds with their own religious identity. Teachers also express that it matters to them whether their school is a more conservative or more liberal OPPS. This makes it possible for them to share their opinions in the classroom. A few teachers considered the OPPS a safe place where they can develop both their professionalism and faith; (3) That of valuing cohesion in the religious climates of the children’s various pedagogical environments. This is particularly about the cohesion among school, family and church and the cohesionbetween teachers fromone year to the next. The preference for that cohesion has a religious basis, namely the importance of socialising in the Christian faith. More pedagogically orientated grounds for this cohesion were mentioned as well, namely that it enables teachers to know the backgrounds of the pupils, allowing them to anticipate and fit best with their pupils, and that children spend a large amount of time at schools. The three interests can be distinguished from one another, but they are still strongly related and all can be connected with the concept of cohesion. In this study, it is found that the teachers experience cohesion when their orthodox Protestant beliefs and practices could be shared and expressed within different environments and/ or domains. Interests 1 and 2 show that teachers value cohesion for the sake of their own well-being. Interest 1 is also about cohesion between teachers’ religious and professional ideals, and interest 2 is about cohesion of one’s private and professional environment as well as cohesion within the school. Interest 3 indicates that teachers value cohesion for the children’s sake. In the interviews, convictions that underlie these interests were also found, which were called “influences”. These influences explain something about why the interests have value for the teachers. Religious, pedagogical and formational influences were distinguished, which could mostly be applied to all three interests. However, the pedagogical influences do not seem to match with interest 2. The religious influences are about teachers willing
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