Welcome to Maryhill High Media Arts College English Department.

The English Department is made up of a team of nine highly professional and skilled teachers. We are a successful department which supports students in achieving good exam results. It is important to our ethos that we encourage our youngsters to develop a keen interest in language and literature through the teaching of reading and writing skills. We also strive to enhance the communication skills of all students, through the teaching of speaking and listening which is embedded in various components. Through the teaching of diverse fiction/ non-fiction texts, we teach students to develop an appreciation of historical and social contexts which influence literature. Learning opportunities outside of the classroom environment are also highly valued, as we offer students experiences which broaden their cultural awareness.

KEY STAGE 3
In years 7, 8 and 9, we offer a diverse curriculum to students covering a range of writing, reading, speaking and listening skills. With the removal of coursework from the new GCSE courses, we are striving to develop independent learners in the lower school who are capable of doing well in future exams and controlled assessments. The focus in Key Stage 3 is to generate an interest in literature and the ability to analyse writer’s choices, whilst creating accurate and entertaining young writers.
We aim to engage students through exciting and flexible text choices which appeal to all students; in recent months the introduction of ‘The Boy in the Striped Pyjamas’ has been very popular with year 9 groups. It also our aim to provide inspirational extra-curricular opportunities for our students, linked to our curriculum and the Manchester theatre trip to see ‘The Woman in Black’ ghost story was enjoyed by 50 of our year 8 students earlier this year.
The table below outlines a typical overview of teaching units for lower school students:
2009/ 10
 

KEY STAGE 4 2009/10
In years 10 and 11, the vast majority of our students undertake the two traditional GCSE courses: English and English Literature, although we do offer a flexible curriculum and some students benefit from the GCSE Entry Level which focuses on the development of basic literacy skills.
Currently, our GCSE groups are finalising their speaking & listening assignments, coursework essays and creative writing pieces before they focus on exam preparation. However, from September 2010, students will no longer complete coursework tasks, focusing instead on controlled assessments, in addition to the regular exam format. This new system will require students to produce work under more formal conditions, although learning and teaching time will remain flexible, ensuring that candidates are sufficiently prepared for their assessments.
The Department has utilised the early-entry policy for some of our students and in November, our 11a1 group sat their GCSE English exams. We view entry options with a flexible approach and our rigorous internal assessment programme informs decisions which are appropriate for each candidate. In some cases, re-sit entries are available so that students have a second opportunity to achieve their target minimum grades.
Although the new GCSE courses contain many changes, particularly in assessment procedures, many of the teaching units will follow existing patterns. For example, many texts and tasks which are currently popular with our students will remain available, such as:
• ‘Of Mice and Men’ assignments
• ‘Romeo and Juliet’ assignments
• The analysis of war poetry
• ‘An Inspector Calls’ assignments
• ‘Educating Rita’ assignments
In our schemes of work for the new 2010 syllabus, we are also looking forward to offering exciting, new text choices such as:
• Modern poetry by poet laureate Carol Ann Duffy and Benjamin Zephaniah
• The classic novel ‘The Strange Case of Dr Jekyll and Mr. Hyde’ by Robert Louis Stevenson.
• The critically-acclaimed novel ‘Tsotsi’ by Athol Fugard
Providing learning experiences away from school is a key priority of the department and our year 11 students thoroughly enjoyed their visit to see a live performance of J.B. Priestley’s play ‘An Inspector Calls,’ earlier this year.

SIXTH FORM
We offer the AS-level and A2-level English Literature courses to our Sixth Form students and our AQA B specification ensures a diverse range of texts and tasks, including significant student ownership of assignment titles. All student applications for our course are considered, although it is generally expected that candidates will at least have attained GCSE C grades in English and English Literature.
Students will study a range of drama, prose and poetry texts leading to coursework and exam assessments at various points throughout the two years. Where possible, students are offered the opportunity to choose their own literature and tasks, although we provide support for these crucial decisions.
Currently, our year 12 students complete the following tasks:
• Coursework Drama essay on ‘Othello’ by William Shakespeare (choice of essay questions linked to the theme of ‘Tragedy’)
• Coursework Drama essay on ‘Death of a Salesman’ by Arthur Miller (choice of essay questions linked to the theme of ‘Tragedy’)
• Study of the modern novel ‘The Kite Runner’ by Khaled Hosseini (exam question on ‘Aspects of Narrative’)
• Study of the modern novel ‘The Curious Incident of the Dog in The Night-time’ by Mark Haddon (exam question on ‘Aspects of Narrative’)
• Poetry Analysis: A range of poems by Thomas Hardy (exam question on ‘Aspects of Narrative’)
• Poetry Analysis: ‘The Rime of the Ancient Mariner’ by Samuel Taylor Coleridge (exam question on ‘Aspects of Narrative’)


In year 13, students study the following texts and assessments:
• Gothic exam unit: ‘Frankenstein’ by Mary Shelley, ‘Dracula’ by Bram Stoker and ‘Macbeth’ by William Shakespeare
• Independent Coursework comparison task: Analysis of Dystopia texts ‘1984’ by George Orwell and ‘The Handmaid’s Tale’ by Margaret Atwood is offered (alternatively, students can compare any two appropriate, literary texts)
• Independent coursework task on the application of literary criticism theory: An appreciation of Feminism in poetry by Carol Ann Duffy is offered (alternatively, students can analyse any one, appropriate, literary text in relation to a chosen theoretical concept)
Throughout year 12 and 13, students are encouraged to contribute to lively classroom discussions and the element of ‘debate’ is prevalent in all coursework assignments and exam assessments. We aim to engage students further by offering learning opportunities outside the classroom and already this year, the following excursions have proved extremely popular:
• Year 12 theatre visit to see a stage version of ‘Othello’ at the Buxton Opera House
• Year 13 University-style lecture day on Gothic literature at a Manchester conference venue
The subject remains a popular choice for year 11 students and our retention rate in year 13 is particularly impressive, with twelve students currently studying the A2 course.
 

The English Department (Banner Left)

BACK ROW: Mrs Y. Skucha (Assistant Head teacher), Mrs. F. Hewardine (Deputy Head teacher)
MIDDLE ROW: Mr. T. Chapman (Subject Leader for Drama), Mrs. D. Wakefield (Head of Sixth Form), Mrs. J. Wilkinson (Year 10 leader), Mrs. B. Harrison (Year 7 Leader)
FRONT ROW: Mr. L. Hawthorne (Subject Leader for English), Miss H. Mclean, Mr. C. Robinson (Assistant Subject Leader for English)