Towards a greener English literature classroom

: Using ecopedagogy and ecocriticism in the secondary school English Literature classroom to raise awareness of the relationship between humans and the natural world, and to return agency to teachers

Abstract

We are living in an age of unprecedented socio-environmental change, where the impact of human activity on the world we live in has started to reveal itself in increasingly troubling ways. All areas of society have a moral obligation to address the dangers of the climate crisis, both for our own generation and for future generations. Within secondary education in England, young people are
becoming increasingly aware and concerned about the impact of the climate crisis on their futures, and secondary schools therefore have a responsibility to respond to these concerns.

As a Head of English in a large north London secondary school, I examine whether there are methods of teaching GCSE English Literature which promote understanding of issues relating to the relationship between humans and the natural world within students’ existing studies of the texts set to them by
examination boards. I employ an autoethnographic methodology to explore how this might be achieved from the front line of secondary education, combining my first-hand experiences as a secondary school English teacher with my wider perspective as an academic researcher. I develop a framework for how largely theoretical existing literature on critical ecopedagogy can be transformed
and applied in practical terms to facilitate teaching that returns agency to both students and teachers in the classroom; this acts as a form of micro-resistance against a burgeoning neoliberal hegemony in education. Alongside this ecopedagogical framework, I use ecocriticism to act as a filter to provide
environmentally-conscious readings of two GCSE set texts, The Tempest (1610-1611) and Lord of the Flies (1954), two texts which can offer political and ethical commentaries on human exploitation of the natural world. Both ecopedagogy and ecocriticism are then used in classroom practice to help promote students’ understanding of the relationship between humans and the natural world.

This research suggests that by employing principles from ecocriticism and critical ecopedagogy within the teaching of GCSE English Literature, it is not only possible to raise awareness of issues relating to humanity’s relationship with the natural world (without detracting from students’ wider understanding of the texts that they are taught) but such an approach can also enhance the wider
teaching of texts. The approach offers a form of micro-resistance against encroaching neoliberal trends for truly educational acts to take place and students to be able to find their place within the world, empowering teaching professionals to take agency and develop a sense of praxis within their practice.
This research offers original frameworks for teaching literature texts using ecopedagogy, and reading texts in a collaborative and collegiate way by adapting a method of hermeneutic content analysis, whilst also providing an original ecocritical reading of Lord of the Flies, and providing examples of a
range of innovative practices for the teaching and assessment of GCSE English Literature texts. In the conclusion to this research, it is clear that English Literature has the potential to play a role in environmental education which has not been considered elsewhere, but which is situated within a tradition of English teaching going back to the 1921 Newbolt Report; additionally, there are
implications about the role of the teacher in the secondary school English Literature classroom, with the research providing a justification for trusting the professionalism of teachers, and offering a quiet defiance to prevailing neoliberal trends. By using ecocriticism and ecopedagogy to guide classroom
practice, there is an opportunity to transform the classroom into a place for teachers to connect students with issues of interest to them in a truly educational way.

Date of Award	2025
Original language	English
Awarding Institution	Canterbury Christ Church University