English and Media Studies Department

Staff:

Courses:

For more on these courses, see the English Programmes of Study below.

ENGLISH & MEDIA STUDIES PROGRAMMES OF STUDY

Key Stages 3, 4 & 5

Year 8 English PoS 

2006-2008 

Year 8 English PoS

 Class teachers:  Mrs Heaney (i) & Mrs McGowan (ii), Mr Ramsay (iii)

• Prose: Two/three novels as shared class reading texts: Skellig or Journey to the Riversea;, The Silver Sword or Carrie’s War or The Boy in the Striped Pyjamas, Buddy or Smith.
• Poetry text – Forty Favourite Poems (Series 1)
• Drama – through role-play and realisation of/response to prose and poetry texts.
• Language topics – various (see list*)
• Literacy through Texts (Book 1)
• Creative Writing in a variety of forms.
• Encountering & Responding to Media Texts – comics and magazines
• Reading for Meaning & Understanding using a variety of  fiction & non-fiction texts

            * Language Topics (Year 8)

• Rhetorical questions
• Present and past tense
• Active and passive voice
• Direct speech punctuation
• Colons and semi-colons
• Formal and informal language
• Complex and simple sentences
• Imagery
• Metaphors and similes
• Personification
• Alliteration
• Rhythm and rhyme
• Descriptive and technical language
• Slang
• Dialect and accent
• Mood and atmosphere
• Purpose and audience
• Homonyms
• Plurals
• Apostrophes
• Prefixes
• Medial vowels (oa   oo   ea   ee    etc)
• Punctuation and spelling
• Passive
• Verb tenses
• Ballads
• Internal rhyme and repetition
• Précis
• Archaic and modern language
• Technical and legal language
• Prefixes
• Synonyms
• Clauses
• Verse forms
• Stylistic features
• Rhetoric
• Standard English
• Clichés
• Spelling rules & dictionary skills
• Sentence & paragraph structures
• Word order
• Direct & Indirect speech
• Verbs & adjectives
• Present participles
• Hyphenated words & ‘kennings’
• Abbreviations
• Unusual spellings
• Adverbs

 NB *Resources to teach the above language topics are to be found in the Language Through Literacy Series (Book 1)

Teachers may substitute other, adequate resources of an appropriate type to cover these topics if they see fit.

Year 9 English PoS

 Class teachers: Ms Heaney  (i) Mrs McGowan (ii) Miss Kane (iii)

• Prose: One /two novels & short stories as shared class reading texts: Witchild, The Goalkeeper’s Revenge, Joby, Chinese Princess,  Flour Babies
• Poetry text – Forty Favourite Poems (Series Two)
• Drama –A Midsummer Night’s Dream or Twelfth Night
• Language topics – various (see list*).
• Literacy through Texts (Book 2)
• Creative Writing & Creation of Class/Individual Poetry Anthology
• Encountering & Responding to Media Texts - advertising

• Reading for Meaning & Understanding using a variety of fiction and non-fiction texts.

            * Language Topics – Year 9

• Writing to imagine, explore and entertain
• Diary forms
• Writing to inform, explain, describe
• Adjectives & spelling patterns
• Writing to imagine
• Punctuation & Capitalisation
• Writing to inform
• Internet research & re-presenting material
• Conventions of literary texts
• Comparatives & spelling rules
• Sentence types &tenses
• Techniques in Poetry
• Writing about a painting for a catalogue
• Making a tableaux of a poem
• Writing description
• Conventions of diary writing
• Argumentative/persuasive writing
• Dramatising Twelfth Night
• Connectives
• Language change
• Topical debate
• Writing to persuade, argue, advise
• Standard English & formality
• Sentence type & effects
• Adverbs a& description
• Imaginative & informative writing

 NB *Resources to teach the above language topics are to be found in the Language Through Literacy Series (Book 2)

Teachers may substitute other, adequate resources of an appropriate type to cover these topics if they see fit.

 Year 10 English PoS

 Class teachers: Miss Kane (i), Mrs McGowan (ii) & Mrs Heaney (iii)

• Prose: One /two novels as shared class reading text: Stonecold, Holes and/or Z for Zachariah
• Poetry text – Forty Favourite Poems (Series Two)
• Drama – Romeo and Juliet or The Merchant of Venice
• Language topics – various (see list*).
• Literacy through Texts (Book 3)
• Creative Writing & use of  ICT
• Writing to Persuade
• Encountering  & analysing Media Texts - television

• Reading for Meaning & Understanding using a variety of fiction and non-fiction texts.

• Practice and Preparation for end-of-key stage exams.

             *Language Topics – Year 10

• Genre & style
• Vocabulary & sentences
• Test Preparation (reading)
• Writing to inform
• Writing to imagine
• Film Language
• Poetic technique
• Speaking & Listening
• Writing to persuade
• Paragraphs
• Comparing texts
• Analysis of play form
• Writing a playscript
• Scriptwriting
• Newspaper articles
• Report writing
• Test Preparation (writing)

 NB *Resources to teach the above language topics are to be found in the Language Through Literacy Series (Book 3)

Teachers may substitute other, adequate resources of an appropriate type to cover these topics if they see fit.

 GCSE English & English Literature 

 Year 11 GCSE English & English Literature  (CCEA Syllabus) PoS

 Class teachers: Mr Ramsay  (i), Mrs McGowan  (ii) & Mr Rooney  (iii)

• All pupils study GCSE English and English Literature (CCEA)
• Prose: One novel as shared class reading text: Of Mice and Men or To Kill A Mockingbird
• Poetry text: Study 16-20 Poems (published after 1914) + written c/work assignment on two of these.
• Drama – Macbeth + written c/work assignment
• Language topics – various (see list).
• Creative Writing (short story or personal) + written c/work assignment.
• Use of  ICT – word processing, re-drafting, lay-out.
• Encountering & analysing Media Texts – newspapers (tabloids & broadsheets)

• Reading for Meaning & Understanding using a variety of fiction and non-fiction texts.

• Practice and Preparation for biennial in-house exams in December and June.

 Year 12 GCSE English & English Literature  PoS

 Class teachers: Mr Ramsay (i), Mrs McGowan (ii), Mr Rooney (iii).

• All pupils study GCSE English and English Literature (CCEA)
• One play as shared class reading text: An Inspector Calls or Blood Brothers + Practice Open Book exam. 
• Poetry text: Study CCEA Poetry Anthology 1 - (published before 1914) + Practice Open Book exam. on these.
• Prose Before 1914 – Frankenstein or Pre-C20th Short Stories + written c/work assignment on one of these.
• Language topics – various (see list).
• Creative Writing (Persuasive) + written c/work assignment
• ICT for research and revision
• Encountering Media Texts – advertising (print & TV), News websites.
• Reading for Meaning and Understanding using a variety of  fiction and non-fiction texts.
• Practice and Preparation by means of full mock exams in February for external CCEA exams in June.

GCE English Literature

 Year 13 PoS - English Literature – EDEXCEL GCE AS Specification 

Unit One – Poetry & Drama  (Assessed by Exam.) 

• Teachers: Mrs McGowan, Mr Ramsay, Mrs Heaney
• Texts for study: Streetcar Named Desire (Williams) + EDEXCEL Poetry Anthology (Sections 1-4)

Unit Two – Pre 1900 Prose  (Assessed by Exam.)

• Teachers – Mr Ramsay, Mrs McGowan
• Text for study: The Return of the Native (Hardy)

Unit Three – Shakespeare in Context  (Assessed by Coursework – 1500 word essay) 

• Teachers – Mrs Heaney & Mrs McGowan
• Text for study: Antony & Cleopatra or Hamlet

Year 14  PoS - English Literature – EDEXCEL GCE A2 Specification 

Unit Four – Modern Prose (Assessed by Coursework – 2500 word essay) 

• Teachers – Mr Ramsay & Mrs McGowan
• Texts for Study: The Bell Jar (Plath) or The Handmaid’s Tale (Attwood)

Unit Five – Pre-1770 Drama & Poetry (Assessed by Exam.)

• Drama:–  text for study:  Othello – Mr Ramsay or Faustus – Mrs Heaney
• Poetry:-  texts for study:  EDEXCEL poetry anthology part two  or  The Whitsun Weddings by Larkin

Unit Six – The Tragic Perspective & Unseen Poetry (Assessed by Exam.) 

• Teachers – Mrs Heaney & Mr Rooney.
• Texts for study: Wuthering Heights & The Return of the Native & a variety of appropriate poems for the ‘unseen’ critical analysis in this synoptic paper.

GCE Media Studies

Year 13 – P o S Media Studies (AQA GCE AS Specification)

Module One – Reading the Media - (Assessed by Exam.)

• Teachers – Mr Rooney & Miss Kane

• Texts for study: Introduction to the Key Concepts, using an appropriate variety of  film and print texts & Reading Movies and The Language of Film

Module Two - Textual Topics in Contemporary Media- (Assessed by Exam.)

• Teacher – Mr Rooney & Miss Kane

• Texts for study: Media Studies (An |Introduction)

• Topics for Study: i. Advertising & Marketing – history, techniques and approaches.

•  ii. British Newspapers – history, content and style, audiences, ownership.

Module Three – Practical Production - (Assessed by Coursework.)

• Teacher – Mr Rooney & Miss Kane

• Content: Students produce 750-word brief  + product + 1000-word evaluation

Year 14 – P o S Media Studies (AQA GCE A2 Specification)

Module Four – Texts and Contexts in the Media

• Teacher – Mr Rooney
• Topics for study: i. Genre

                               ii. Representation

• Texts for study: Film Noir: Double Indemnity, Mildred Pierce & Devil in a Blue Dress.

Science Fiction: Forbidden Planet, 2001, Bladerunner, The Matrix

Challenging Stereotypes: Erin Brokovich, Billy Elliott, Bend it Like Beckham.

Real and Realistic: TV Soap- Coronation Street.

Module Five – Independent Study (3000-word Essay – assessed by coursework)

 ·         Teacher – Mr Rooney

·        Texts and topics: A contemporary* media text(s) chosen by the student in negotiation with tutor is researched, analysed and evaluated using key concepts.

·        *Contemporary is defined as a media product (advertising campaign, TV programme, film etc) which has been released for public consumption within two years prior to the student beginning the AS course up to the present time.

Module Six – Comparative Critical Analysis

 ·         Teacher – Mr Rooney

·         Texts for study: An appropriate variety of film and print texts.  Reading Movies and The Language of Film are studied for purpose of comparison and contrast, using the key concepts as identified in the spec.