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Original poster

Eng. Lit. or Media Studies for GCSE?

39 replies

klm4765 · 20/02/2011 23:16

DD is in Yr. 9 and choosing GCSE options. She has to choose between English Literature and Media Studies and at the moment is saying she would prefer Media Studies. She is good at English, and loves reading, so I was quite surprised - also I have always viewed Media Studies as a 'soft' subject, which won't be well-regarded by employers/ university admissions depts.
However, Eng. Lit seems to have changed a lot since I did it - they will 'study' 1 short novel, and an anthology of poetry and a collection of short stories. They start the book in Year 9, and are not allowed to take it home and 'the teachers tell them which passages to read, and what to write'.
So, I would welcome views on whether a 'dumbed-down' English Literature GCSE is really worth more than Media Studies, and if so, how do I convince DD? TIA

OP posts:
cakeywakey · 20/02/2011 23:20

Always worth going for the more 'academic' subject as it will be more favourably viewed at further and higher education stages and by employers. Qualifications in English and Maths are still the ones that employers look for.

I did Media Studies A Level and, while I enjoyed it, I really wish I hadn't chosen it as it significantly dented my university applications. Rightly or wrongly it's just not considered as good as more traditional subjects.

summer68 · 20/02/2011 23:24

I agree with Cakeywakeys coments. At my childrens school they have completely dropped media studies of any kind (betec or gcse) and eng lit is compulsory- I would encourage your dd to think about her choice.

generalhaig · 20/02/2011 23:24

no way should she drop Eng Lit for Media Studies GCSE - it will seriously limit her choices for years to come

tbh I'm Shock that her school would even consider this to be a valid options choice - most schools do Eng Lang & Lit as a matter of course

media studies at any level is a 'soft' subject and as far as I can see the only career you actually need media studies for is being a media studies teacher ...

Icoulddoitbetter · 20/02/2011 23:25

All I can say is that I'm shocked eng lit is now a choice rather that compulsary, when did that happen???? Usually it annoys me when people start talking about "soft" GCSE subjects, but in this case, she has to take English!!!!!!

ViolaTricolor · 20/02/2011 23:26

Definitely English Lit. Media Studies' bad name is probably unfair because there's nothing intrinsically 'lesser' about it as a subject, but what cakeywakey says is right (I'm an arts and humanities lecturer).

gerontius · 21/02/2011 01:49

Are you sure she's got it right? Because English Lit is almost definitely compulsory everywhere.....

SnapFrakkleAndPop · 21/02/2011 03:47

Definitely, definitely Eng Lit.

SueWhite · 21/02/2011 03:57

If she doesn't do Eng Lit she can't go to a decent university. Simple as that.

circular · 21/02/2011 07:19

Very surprised at this. Eng Lit is generally core except for the very lowest academic group.

Also shocked that Shakespeare seems to be out now. Not sure what kind of thing the short stories can include.

Believe Animal Farm is one of the short novel choices which is a great book to study.

Shame not to do it if your DD is good at English. Although language is the more important one, two English GCSEs look better than one.

magentadreamer · 21/02/2011 08:52

At my DD's school English Lit is compulsary for all bar the bottom two sets who do English and Media Studies.

Shakespeare is very much on the agenda with the exam board DD's school uses and I would suspect all the others - DD did a mock CA on Macbeth last week. As for not being able to take the book home I would suggest a trip to the local library to borrow a copy. DD gets very frustrated with the reading a passage at a time thing in class so we have always either borrowed or bought a copy of the class book so DD could actually sit down at home and read it. DD starts her English Lit courses in yr10 and her "Summer homework" will be to read the set books.

Punkatheart · 21/02/2011 09:20

English Lit - otherwise all the wonderful things that she will remember her whole life. Good literature is enriching, as well as appreciated by universities. Media studies? Pah!

senua · 21/02/2011 10:05

I agree with what everyone else has said. Basically, what she thinks is practically irrelevant; it is what future educators/employers think that is the important thing (and they will have the same attitude as those on here).

It tends to be lower sets that do not do Eng Lit. Employers will not think that she made a deliberate choice to do Media Studies. They will assume that the school told her to do MS because she was not capable of doing Eng Lit.

Also agree that it is utter tosh that they are 'not allowed to take the book home'. I understand that the school will wish to protect their textbooks but there is nothing to stop her finding her own copy (it will be a well-known book, easy and cheap to source) to read, annotate and enjoy at her own pace.

coastgirl · 21/02/2011 10:11

English Lit - and I'm not saying this from snobbery, as I teach GCSE Media Studies! Media is a perfectly acceptable 'extra' option, as a fun one after the hard choices are in, but Literature must go ahead of it.

magentadreamer · 21/02/2011 11:19

I'm not too sure if English Lit these days is actually dumbed down as the OP states. Back in my day for English Lit O level we studied Pride and Prejudice, Macbeth and a collection of god awful poems -sorry but the Ancient Mariener will haunt me for ever! I've looked again at the spec for DD's English Lit. There are two 2 hr exams plus a controlled assessment. I only ever recall one exam for my O level Lit.

Unit one is comparative poetry and different cultures prose = 1 book plus poems Assessed by 2hr exam

Unit 2 One play and one book Assessed by a 2 hr exam

Unit 3 Shakespeare play plus "heritage" poems - please tell me it's not the Ancient Mariener as DD will have a fit Grin Assessed by CA which I suspect will be another two hour test.

Looking at the above I think I had an easy ride when it came to English Lit.

webwiz · 21/02/2011 11:57

magnetadreamer DS(year 9) did a mock CA on Macbeth last week as well.

I wouldn't view English Lit as dumbed down either, my DD's had their own copies of the set book (Jane Eyre and Great Expectations) and they were expected to read all of it even if they only looked at sections in class.

It seems odd to make English Lit a choice as most schools only let those who are struggling at English not take it. I would be quite shocked if DS had been given this choice.

Lilymaid · 21/02/2011 12:02

No contest - English Lit.
My non academic DS took Media Studies GCSE in Y9, whilst still aged 13. Classes were for a double period a week after school over two terms only and the teacher had a chronic health condition so missed some lessons. He got a D. OK that's not a real pass, but I think it demonstrates something.

OesMorDdreng · 21/02/2011 12:13

Weird that she even got a choice! At my school everyone did English lit.Confused

In any case, English is definitely the better choice. It's a lot more respected, a lot more fun, and a lot more interesting.
Also, it's the absence of an ENglish Literature GCSE that will seem suspicious on an application form rather than the presence of Media, iyswim.

And at my school English Lit was not dumbed down as far as I could see. We had to study Silas Marner and Romeo and Juliet for the exam. Both were quite heavy texts to remember quotes from and analyse. Then for coursework we read A View From The Bridge, Doris Lessing's short stories, and various other poetry. There was an unseen poem in the exam too.
ALthough this was evidently a different exam board, I do not think it would be significantly easier on other boards. If it's presented as 'dumbed-down', that's your school's approach, rather than the actual course content.

witchwithallthetrimmings · 21/02/2011 12:17

english lit. My guess is that her teacher will be only to willing for your dd to read the book for herself and process her own ideas.

hocuspontas · 21/02/2011 12:20

Another one here who thought it was compulsory. I thought the standard GCSE pack of 10 was maths, 2 science, 2 english and a compulsory like RE or ICT, leaving 4 choices.

LadyGlencoraPalliser · 21/02/2011 14:07

Just to clear up - English Lit is not compulsory. English is - you can either do English Lang or the new English spec which combines lang and lit and is just called English. Most schools offer Lang and Lit and some like the OP's school offer the Lang and Media to the weaker students. Or they might offer the new spec English plus media or digital communication. What they won't offer is the new spec English plus Lit because they overlap too much.
OP, assuming the offer is English Lang with a choice of either Lit or Media, I would say she really needs to do Literature if she is university material. The Literature module is not dumbed down if delivered well and it is definitely worth more than Media.

FourFingeredKitkat · 21/02/2011 14:10

Agree with LadyGP's posting. Lit is the only way to go if tertiary eductaion is on the agenda for your DC.

Pluto · 21/02/2011 14:18

Your DD really must do Eng Lit. Trust all the good advice you have had on here. I'm a Head of English - LadyGlencora has summed up the specs very clearly.

I think in a couple of years time less and less schools will be be offering Media. The Russel Group unis don't rate it at all and you don't need it for a career in the Media either.

SnapFrakkleAndPop · 21/02/2011 14:18

Uh Silas Marner. That book made an everlasting impression on me though...

FioFio · 21/02/2011 14:19

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LadyGlencoraPalliser · 21/02/2011 14:22

I did Silas Marner too, Snap. I hated it, and still do. If only we could have done Middlemarch instead. Or even The Mill on the Floss.