Pupil passive, learner active in schooling and the work of fiction: William Golding’s 'Lord of the Flies'

Abstract

In connection with a traditional model of schooling, John Dewey describes the pupil as a “theoretical spectator”, someone who absorbs knowledge rather than being involved in experience. The consequence of this, meanwhile, is that the child is often unable to make sense of what she/he is given let alone apply it in the world outside of school. As an alternative to this Dewey puts forward a vision of schooling in which the learner (rather than pupil) is actively engaged in experimentation in the classroom, constantly prompted to understand and give meaning to what she/he is doing. In terms of contemporary schooling these ideas can be related to developmental and social constructivist models which, similarly, place the learner as an active constructor of knowledge, either with or without the help of an adult (teacher). In the article a brief outline of traditional schooling in contrast to contemporary practices is given. Following on from this, the question as to what extent works of fiction show these models of education in the attitudes and actions of their protagonists is posed. In doing so, a number of events from William Golding’s Lord of the Flies are considered.