Media Studies

Media Studies is essential to understanding the world in which our students live. This curriculum enables students to select, explore and understand the media that surrounds them and forms a central part of their lives. It provides them with the knowledge that is essential to becoming critical readers of media texts, to identify fake news and propaganda and to understand how texts can impact both their personal beliefs and ideologies, as well as those of their peers and wider audiences. The technical knowledge imparted allows them to become media producers, breaking down barriers and allowing access to an industry long considered elite and exclusive. By studying media they can become a valuable part of a 24 hour global industry, with the cultural capital and technical knowledge to take considered and articulate positions on issues they may otherwise be excluded from.

Media Studies LTP 2025-26

BTEC Media Studies at Key Stage 4

Media Studies is part of the optional curriculum at Key Stage 4. 

Aims of the Course

As we move deeper into the 21st Century it becomes ever harder to escape the reach and influence of modern media.  We carry it with us on our smartphones; we sit with it in our homes and offices.  We actively seek it out, using social networks to find it and share it.  It influences everything that we do and it is the most powerful tool in shaping and framing the world in which we live. We believe that understanding the media and the way it shapes our lives is an indispensable tool in today’s society.  In Media Studies we encourage students to explore how the choices they make and the media they consume effects their attitudes, outlook and behaviour.  At New Mills School we will be placing an emphasis on the exploration and creation of audio/visual texts, setting the course apart from our Creative iMedia option which focuses on more digital media such as graphic creation and digital games. Whilst there is some overlap in the exploration of the media industry as a whole, this course puts more emphasis on traditional film, TV and print based texts. 

Course Content 

Media Studies offers an exploration of a wide range of media texts and industries.  You will tackle both print and moving image texts looking at examples from film, TV, magazines, newspapers, posters, adverts and even computer games. The course consists of three components: 

  • Component 1: Exploring Media Products 
    Learners will develop their understanding of how media products create meaning for their audiences. Learners will examine existing products and explore media production techniques. 
  • Component 2: Developing Digital Media Production Skills 
    Learners will develop and apply skills and techniques in media production processes by creating a media product from the audio/moving image sector 
  • Component 3: Create a Media Product in Response to a Brief 
    Learners will apply and develop their planning and production skills and techniques to create a media product in response to a client brief. 
assessment

In total 40% External Exam, 60% Internal Assessment 

  • Component 1: Exploring Media Products – 30% of total mark, internally assessed
  • Component 2: Developing Digital Media Production Skills – 30% of total mark, internally assessed 
  • Component 3: Create a Media Product in Response to a Brief - 40% of total mark, externally assessed.
Beyond BTEC Media Studies

Many Media Studies students at New Mills School go on to study Media as an A level.  They enjoy developing the skills and knowledge they have gained and our most successful alumni can be found in a wide range of institutions.  Some have gone on to prestigious Film and Media Institutions such as Media City Campus in Salford and Westminster University Film School, others can be found working at the BBC, ITV and for independent studios and agencies across the UK.

Further Information

The awarding body for BTEC Media Studies is Peason.  Futher infromation about the qualification can be found on the Peason website here: BTEC Creative Media Production.