Media Studies
Subject Leader:
Mr C Cottingham – ccottingham@oriel.w-sussex.sch.uk
Teaching staff
Mrs C Denman – cdenman@oriel.w-sussex.sch.uk
Ms G Gray – ggray@oriel.w-sussex.sch.uk
Mr P Myson – pmyson@oriel.w-sussex.sch.uk
“In the 21st Century, the century our children will live in, the century they will in fact shape, media literacy will not be a luxury; it will be a necessity.”
Linda Ellerbee ( journalist and television producer)
“The employment rate of media studies graduates is higher than in most other humnities and social science subjects.”
David Buckingham, The Guardian, 2009
“Media study does not replace text. It broadens and deepens our understanding of texts.”
Philip M. Anderson, “Visual & Verbal Thinking” in Media Literacy
“It is no longer enough to simply read and write. Students must also become literate in the understanding of visual images. Our children must learn how to spot a stereotype, isolate a social cliché and distinguish facts from propaganda, analysis from banter, important news from coverage.”
Ernest Boyer, past president of the Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching, and former U.S. Commissioner of Education
Subject Overview
We are rightly proud of the reputation for rigour and outstanding examination results Media Studies at Oriel High School enjoys. With our talented teaching staff, own dedicated IT suite and a full-time technician, pupils and students are supported and challenged. Our recent alumni include a Google media apprentice, journalists and online games designers. The Media industry is the fastest growing sector in the UK and our courses reflect that. In the last two years we have visited The Museum of Brands, Digital Britain at the South Bank, The London Dungeons, The BBFC, The Making of Harry Potter Experience and The BFI.
Course Outlines
GCSE Media Studies – AQA 4810
This course encourages and develops students’ ability to critically understand the role of the media in daily life. The final grade is achieved through completion of controlled assessments (60%) and examination (40%). The examination topic for 2015 is ‘Television News’.
AS/A2 Media Studies – AQA 2570
A-level Media Studies is designed to encourage our students to:
- enhance their enjoyment and appreciation of the media and its role in their daily lives
- develop critical understanding of the media through engagement with media products and concepts and through the creative application of practical skills
- explore production processes, technologies and other relevant contexts
- become independent in research skills and their application in their practical work and in developing their own views and interpretations.
The final grade is achieved through completion of practical film or online projects (50%) and examination (50%).
