Creative Media
Curriculum Intent
Aim:
The Creative Media curriculum aims to ensure that all students are equipped with a range of knowledge and skills across the various sectors within the media industry. This will enable them to choose a specialisation as they progress through their journey, developing specific skills even further and fostering a passion for their chosen area, whilst also producing adaptable and informed media practitioners.
Key Concepts:
The world has moved into the digital age. The majority of the interactions that young people have are through this technology. It is no surprise then that one of the largest sectors in the UK, in terms of GDP and growth, is the creative media industries. Therefore one of the key areas for this subject is developing our students’ knowledge of how this technology works and giving them the skills to be creative in designing products. This will equip them for not only engaging with this technology, but also to be able to gain employment in the fastest growing sector in the UK and around the world.
As students progress, it becomes even more important to develop their analytical skills, so that rather than just consuming and creating digital media, they can also understand its effects on those around them and begin to question how it can be designed and used.
Sequencing:
The skills and knowledge that are introduced at the start of the KS4 course continue to develop through KS5 and then into higher education or employment. This is because these are the core elements needed to thrive in the sector. Starting with introducing these at KS4, students have a chance to understand what they are and how they work. At KS5 practical skills are further developed so that they more realistically match professional expectations, which prepares them for either employment or further education. This is the same with knowledge, where concepts are introduced early on, but built upon in KS5, where students are then encouraged to evaluate and question elements such as media theories.
Shaping the Individual:
Right from the start students are given the opportunity to apply their skills and knowledge in real world scenarios. This enables them to see the worth of what they are learning and how they themselves will use it, fostering engagement and an understanding of the connections between their education and the world they live in.
Adapted optional units also allow for the development of a love of learning. By giving a broad range of units in KS4 students can then specialise in KS5, further developing their skills in an area they feel passionate about.
As students progress they are also given the tools to be able to work more independently, with emphasis in KS5 on reducing scaffolding and allowing students to take more control of their projects. This prepares them for life at university or in a working environment.
Cultural Capital:
At the heart of the course is an examination of how media affects those that consume it. Consideration of the audience and how media is shaped to engage them is introduced at the start of KS4. By KS5 the students are fully considering the moral and ethical impact of media design, as well as understanding the different ways that it can be read by audiences from different cultures. This not only makes them better producers of media, but more rounded individuals with a storing ability to see things from multiple perspectives.
Key Experiences:
Visits from practising professionals are organised throughout the course. This enables them to gain vital knowledge about the industry but also how their learning applies to this. At KS5 visits to university organised workshops enable them to get hands-on experience with other technologies, as well as getting a first hand experience of what learning is like at higher education.
Key Stage 4
Course Introduction:
Media is now an everyday part of our lives and through this course students will have the opportunity to develop a greater understanding of the industry, how media is constructed and how it impacts audiences. Working in real world scenarios, the course gives students the opportunity to develop knowledge about media practices, as well as key skills in using technology such as Photoshop and digital cameras.
Course Outline:
The Level 2 Certificate is split into 1 exam and 2 coursework units. In year 10 students will be introduced to the industry and key concepts before applying this to the first coursework unit, responding to a brief and producing a photo and video portfolio for a client. In Year 11 these skills and knowledge will be further developed as students produce a digital graphic, again for a client, before completing the exam. This course is synoptic, meaning the knowledge and skills learned in one unit are also used in the others.
Key Stage 5
The BTEC Level 3 Extended Certificate in Creative Digital Media Production provides a coherent introduction to the study of creative digital media production, helping students develop an understanding of the media industry through analysing media representations and pitching and producing media projects. The course is divided into two mandatory exam units (on media representations and pitching media products) and two internally assessed coursework units. The first of these coursework units focuses on the pre-production planning for a short film, including scripts, storyboards, schedules and budgets. The other optional unit follows on from this and allows students to develop practical skills through the filming and editing of their short film. The course is designed to progress to media related degrees at university and ultimately to employment, particularly in the media industries.
Progression Mapping
Creative Media Progression Pathways