Lesson video

- Hello, my name is Mrs. Blatchford, and I'm a citizenship teacher, and today I'm going to be your citizenship teacher.

And in our lesson today, it gives us the opportunity to recap on the learning that we have done in this unit about how the media can hold those in power to account.

So let's get started.

You are going to need some equipment for our lesson today.

So you're going to need a pen or pencil and some paper.

I'd also suggest that you get yourself in a quiet, comfortable space that you know that you can focus on our lesson and you're not going to be disturbed.

If you need to do either of those things now, I suggest you pause the video and then you can just press Play when you are ready to get started.

So in our lesson today, we are gonna focus on three key questions.

The first of those is what do we understand by the media? And this is what have we learned in the unit so far so we can do a bit of a recap.

The second of our key questions for today is to look at what we understand by the role of the media in holding those in power to account.

So what, again, have we developed in terms of our understanding in this unit? And then finally, you're gonna have the opportunity to apply that knowledge and understanding to a range of questions.

I thought we'd start our lesson today just in a unit recap.

So our overarching inquiry question was how well does the media hold those in power to account? And these are the things that we've done so far in terms of our lessons in this unit.

So in the first lesson, we looked at the role of the media in a democracy.

In our second lesson, we looked at what is responsible journalism? In our third lesson, we looked at how the media supports democracy.

In our fourth lesson, we looked at what is misinformation, and what we can do about it? And then in our last lesson together, we looked at should the media ever be censored? In our lesson today, we're gonna go back to that original overarching question and think about how well the media holds those in power to account.

And we're gonna have the opportunity to recap on our learning.

The first thing I'm gonna ask you to do, so our first task, is you're gonna have a go at a mind map.

And that mind map needs to look at the key learning for the unit.

So think about those things I've just said we've covered, how well the media holds those in power to account.

And think about all those different areas that we've covered in this unit.

And I'd just like you to produce a mind map showing your key learning, the key words that you've remembered from this unit.

So remember, I'm asking you to produce a main map, which shows your key learning from the unit, how well the media holds those in power to account.

So you could use that unit recap to help you, and that's also available on the worksheet to go with the lesson should you need to, or you can just rewind the video a little bit.

So pause the video at this point and then when you've produced your mind map, you can press Play.

So I wonder how much of this you have managed to include in your mind map.

So these are bullet points here of some of the content that we've gone through.

So we've looked at democracy and democratic values.

We've looked at traditional media and new media, and the definitions of those, free press, or freedom of the press, and what that means, what it looks like in practise.

We looked at what it means to be a responsible journalist, that truthful accountable, impartial, say, independent of any political interference.

And then we looked at how journalism is regulated, how the media is regulated.

This is print media in particular here.

We looked at the National Union of Journalist's Code of Conduct and the Editors' Code of Practise.

We looked whether or not stories are in the public interest.

Remember, that's compared to being of interest to the public.

We looked at the how the media's held politicians, specifically, to account, 'cause we looked at the MPs' expenses scandal.

We looked at false or misleading information.

Remember, I asked you to use these three key terms instead of using that term fake news, which is too narrow a term.

So, misinformation, disinformation, malinformation, and who spreads that misinformation and why? We looked at censorship in our last lesson.

And then we looked at the role Ofcom in terms of regulation and hold into account as well.

So the next part of our lesson, we're gonna just look at what do we understand about the role of the media in holding those in power to account? And again, it gives us the opportunity to recap.

So let's recap on some of the ways that the media supports democratic values and fulfils its role in holding those in power to account.

So this is something we looked at in our previous lessons.

So the media upholds freedom of expression and opinion for citizens, keeps us informed, ensures information published is accurate, reports on a broad range of political views so that the electorate, those who are registered to vote, and can make informed decisions.

They're free from interference, they're able to express those opinions.

They raise awareness of social issues, helping us to bring around social change, and they hold all of those in positions of power to account.

It's not just politicians, anyone who holds a position of power, whether that be in a business, whether that be a religious position of power, a member of Parliament, a local counsellor.

So all of those in positions of power can be held to account by the media.

We've considered then the key actions the media takes to uphold democratic values.

So now's our chance to recap and apply that.

So we've also considered in our lessons how this is balanced with regulation and the need to tackle misinformation.

You're now going to apply this by considering whether the media is effective in keeping UK citizens informed about politics.

You're gonna need this for our final task in the lesson today because you're gonna use this information to respond to an essay question.

So what I'm gonna show you in a second is a list of statements on the next slide.

And these are also available on the worksheet too, so you might want to download that if you can.

If not, don't worry, you'll be able to write them out as a table.

So you're gonna decide whether each statement on the slide I'm gonna show you shows that the media is effective or not effective at keeping UK citizens well-informed about politics.

And as I suggest here, you can list the statements in a simple table.

So these are the statements that I'd like you to sort.

So some of these show that the media is effective in keeping UK citizens informed about politics.

Some of them indicate that the media is not effective in keeping UK citizens informed about politics.

And as I say, this is available on the worksheet for the lessons, so you can download it or just write that simple table out.

And remember, you're gonna need these later on in the lesson.

So, six statements to sort.

The first one then, The media plays a key role in holding those in power to account.

You got the example here of the 2009 "Daily Telegraph" investigation into MPs' expenses.

Due to the increasing amount of misinformation, the media is no longer trusted by the public.

This means citizens are seeking their information elsewhere.

Newspapers are politically biassed anyway and this affects the way they report information to citizens.

Newspapers are free from political interference in the UK and so the freedom of the press means it can be effective in keeping UK citizens well-informed.

Newspapers, in particular, no longer have the resources to effectively carry out their role of keeping UK citizens well-informed.

And the final statement, the media have the right to report on issues of public interest, this is used to ensure citizens have accurate information about political matters.

So remember what I'm asking you to do is decide whether the provided statements show the media is effective or not effective at keeping UK citizens well-informed about politics.

You can list your statements in a simple table, or you can make a key on the worksheet if you've downloaded it, whichever's easiest for you.

So at this point, I'm gonna ask you to pause the video and when you've sorted those statements, just press Play.

So I'm gonna give you some feedback now, make sure you've got the right statements in the right area.

So these three statements show that the media is effective in informing UK citizens about politics.

So hopefully you've picked these three out.

So the media plays a key role in holding those in power to account, and we've got the example of the "Daily Telegraph" and the MPs' expenses investigation here.

Second statement, newspapers are free from political interference in the UK, so the freedom of the press means it's effective in keeping UK citizens well-informed.

And the final statement here is that the media have the right to report on issues of public interest, and this is used to ensure citizens have accurate information about political matters.

And then these three statements show the media is not effective in keeping UK citizens informed politics.

So three statements you should have picked out here is due to the increasing amount of misinformation, the media is no longer trusted by the public.

This means citizens are seeking their information elsewhere.

Newspapers, in particular, no longer have the resources to effectively carry out their role of keeping UK citizens well-informed.

Newspapers are politically biassed anyway and this affects the way they report information to citizens.

Good stuff if you had those on the right side of the argument, really well done.

Now, the rest of our lesson today, we're gonna be applying that knowledge and understanding to a range of different questions.

We're gonna start with a multiple choice question.

So with a multiple choice question, first of all, always make sure if you're given multiple choice questions, that you have a go at them.

You've got nothing to lose.

You going to have maybe a one in four chance of being right, even if you're not sure of the right answer.

And the first thing I always try to do when I look at multiple choices, try to eliminate ones that you know cannot be right, okay? The number in brackets on a question usually tells you how many marks is available, so always have a look at that, 'cause this would tell me for this particular answer, I'm looking for one response.

Sometimes in multiple choice, they might ask you for more than one response.

They might say, "Pick out all those that are correct." And then you could have a look at how many marks there are, would give you an indication of how many they think are going to be correct, okay? So it's one mark for one response, generally, in multiple choice.

I know that's really obvious, but sometimes if we're doing an assessment or trying to apply it, sometimes we panic a bit.

The other thing, just remember, is to check the wording of questions carefully as well.

In this one, for example, I would pick out the word restrict.

It's reminding us that restrict the right of freedom of expression, okay? And the answer in this case would be B.

So the reason why the UK government sometimes restrict the right, control the right to freedom of expression, in these statements here, the right answer would be to safeguard national security.

This is an example of another type of question you might be asked to answer.

So this is a short answer question.

This one is two marks, that's because it's asking you to use an example and explain a term.

So in this example, you're being asked to define what's meant by social media and use an example to help you.

So this is my suggested response.

So I've said, "Social media can be defined as websites and applications that enable users to create and share content or to participate in social networking.

An example of social media would be Twitter.

Users create tweets which they share with other Twitter users they are connected with." So that's my example of how I would answer that question.

So you're gonna have a go at a question yourself now.

So again, it's a short answer question.

It's got two marks for this.

So it says, "State two reasons why the UK government has had difficulty regulating the media." So you're gonna have a go at that question.

Now, remember, you've got two reasons it's asking for you to include, and it's asking you to think about difficulty regulating the media.

So what are the problems with regulating the media? Think about the situation in the UK.

So, state two reasons why the UK government has had difficulty regulating the media.

And in your response, you could think about some of these ideas that we've talked about in our lesson, so, free press, free speech, maybe public interest, content may not originate in the UK.

So why might some of those things lead to difficulty for the UK government? So, time to pause the video now, have a go at that question, and then when you have had a go, just press Play and I'll give you some feedback.

So these are some of the things that you might have included in your response.

So the UK media is strongly independent and keen to defend freedom of speech.

They might not want to regulate free speech.

Governments wish to avoid direct state regulation as they might be accused of trying to limit free speech.

There's no political consensus on how to manage media regulation and/or what restrictions to impose on the media.

Regulating media content that originated abroad is not possible without the cooperation of foreign governments.

Content initiated by individuals online or via social media is really difficult to monitor and control.

So all of these lead to issues for our government in being able to control what's on the media and regulate the media.

So remember the essay title is, "The UK media is very effective at keeping UK citizens well-informed about politics." Now, if you remember back to our first task, this is what we did in our first task.

And one technique that you can use to help you look at arguments from both sides, or produce a balanced argument, is what I've done here, and it's on the one hand, on the other hand.

And you might have used this before.

I always draw out my two hands because it helps me to structure the argument, but also reminds me that they're on opposite sides from each other as well.

So it just gives me, again, that chance to structure my arguments and think really carefully about what am I gonna use as statements in favour of this arguments, or in favour of this statement, and what am I gonna use against this statement? And I have put things on the foreside, like social media, the power of social media, public interest, and all those examples that you could use.

And I've included here, the MPs' expenses scandal, for example.

Newspapers are free from political interference, so they're effective informing us.

And also, newspapers and the media at large produce opinion polls and that helps to inform the public about what people's opinions are, in general.

And then against, some of statements, again, from task one, remember? That the newspapers lack the resources to carry out this role effectively, that they produce bias in reporting, and therefore, that maybe doesn't give us clear and accurate information.

Some information is misleading or false, and that can lead us to trust the media less, and also maybe seek our information elsewhere.

And also, another thing about the media is you've got owners of the media who may be pursuing their own agendas.

So they're producing publications, which inform people who maybe are like-minded.

So you are not getting a broad range of views in the media.

So therefore, they're maybe not well-informed about different viewpoints.

So this is just me planning out my essay to begin with.

And then when it comes to the structure, what I'm gonna suggest is you use this structure so that you start with an introduction, and I'll show you my introduction in a second.

Then you would have two arguments agreeing with the statement, and you've already planned those out 'cause you've either done on the one hand, on the other hand, or we did the table at the beginning of the lesson as well to help us with the planning for this.

So the introduction really helps set the scene.

Two arguments agreeing, two arguments disagreeing with the statement and you've explained those.

And always, something that people quite often forget to do is a conclusion summing up what you think about the statement.

Where do you lie? It says to what extent, so tell us, tell us to what extent do you fully agree.

Do you fully disagree? Or are you somewhere in the middle and why, importantly? So I said I would show you my introduction.

So, this is what I have written.

Now, you can see, I've got some letters down the left-hand side here.

I've also reminded us of the title.

So remember the title is, "The UK media is very effective at keeping UK citizens well-informed about politics." So, S, F, and A down the left-hand side.

S is for setting the scene.

What is this essay about? So I've started mainly with "One of the key roles of the media in a democracy, such as the UK, is to inform the public about key issues of the day." So it really clearly sets out what we are going to be looking at in this essay.

Then the F and the A, or an argument for and an argument against.

So just briefly, starting to draw out the arguments for and against, and this just helps me to structure the argument as I'm going, and it's a good way to help us get started.

It kinda allows us to show you intend to cover the question in your response.

So my argument for those, "From policies to pandemics, journalists work hard to keep us informed and present alternative points of view." The against, though, "Some would say, however, that the media may present information, which is politically biassed.

So is the media actually effective in keeping citizens well-informed about politics?" So I've really clearly set out what we're expecting to read in this essay.

Now, if you'd like to use that introduction to help get you started, absolutely fine.

That is my free gift to you.

Go ahead and use it.

If you would prefer to structure it yourself, again, please feel free to do that.

I promise I won't be upset that you didn't wanna use my introduction.

Now, when we're writing an argument, we've set out what our essay is about in our introduction.

We're now gonna start writing the arguments for and against the statement.

I would always suggest we use this structure so that we're remembering to explain and use evidence.

And again, you may well be familiar with this way of forming an argument, say, it's a P paragraph.

I know my students are used to using this in a broad range of subjects.

So it's a really good technique that we can use in our lessons, too.

And it's easier to probably show you in practise.

So, I have written a P paragraph for my supporting argument.

So this would go under my introduction.

So, remember, it's pointy, make a point.

You give some evidence and you explain that evidence.

So, in my P paragraphs, remember, this is a supporting statement.

So this is saying, "Yes, the media is effective in keeping UK citizens well-informed about politics." So, on the one hand, so remember my hands? "On the one hand in the UK, it can be said that one of the democratic values which we uphold is freedom of the press." So that's my point.

My evidence is that "Newspapers in the UK are not controlled by the government, and what they publish is free from political interference." What does that mean? So my explanation, "As a result, they're able to provide balanced information to citizens and keep them informed about a range of different political views on important issues of the day." So that's my example supporting statement.

Again, if you wanna use that as your first opening paragraph in terms of a supporting argument, absolutely fine.

And then choose a second reason to support the statement.

Remember, we identified those back in task one, they're on the worksheet as well.

And there's also some support on the worksheet with sentence openers, which you might find helpful at this point as well.

So you're gonna write a second supporting statement, or you're gonna write two if you're not using mine.

Then you'll need to write two arguments against the statement using the same P paragraph structure.

Again, remember the statements from task one you can use.

And then don't forget to add your conclusion on what you think, overall, where do you sit and why? So at this point, I'm gonna ask you to pause the video so that you can have a go at structuring your full essay.

So remember the title, again, "The UK media is very effective at keeping UK citizens well-informed about politics." So remember, use the structure from our lesson, use your P paragraphs.

You could always rewind the video to help you should you need to.

So pause the video, have a go at writing that essay, and then when you are finished, just press Play, and I'll give you some feedback to have a look at where you have gone well, maybe some things to improve as well.

So, what I'm gonna do now is just give you a little bit of feedback on the two areas, which I didn't cover before I asked you to have a go at the essay.

So, this could be an example of an opposing argument that you might also have used yourself.

So remember, opposing, so this time we're looking at why someone might disagree with this statement.

So, "In contrast, some would argue that there is an increasing amount of misinformation published in the media in the UK.

As a consequence, this is led to a mistrust of the media, citizens feel they can no longer believe what is published.

This has led citizens to seek their information from alternative sources, which would indicate that the UK media is not very effective at keeping citizens informed about issues." So again, hopefully you've got something similar.

You may have picked out different opposing arguments, but that structure, again, that point, that evidence, that explain is really important.

And then the bit I said, that quite often, people miss is the conclusion, and this is my example of my conclusion.

So in the conclusion, I've got an opening statement, I've given some evaluation, and then I've made a decision.

So opening is the O, E for evaluation, and D is my decision.

What have I decided overall? So, my opening statement here, "It's clear that there is evidence to show the media is effective in keeping UK citizens informed.

However, there are challenges.

The media needs to work hard to ensure that the information they're presenting is both accurate and in the public interest.

This will help them to build trust and the counter the effects of the spread of misinformation.

Overall, I agree with the statement, the media uses its freedom to keep citizens well-informed about politics and hold those in positions of power to account." So I've just summed up what I think and I've clearly said where I stand.

I agree with the statement overall.

So, we've come to the end of our lesson, and this is the end lesson within the unit as well.

So hopefully, you've had an opportunity today to go back and think about what we've learned in this unit and apply it.

So the three things we started out at the beginning of our lesson today was to think about what we've already learned.

So, hopefully, you've had a good opportunity to go back and look at that information again.

What do we understand about the role of the media in holding those in power to account? We've had the opportunity to recap on those and hopefully, you would now be able to explain those.

And also, how can we apply that knowledge and understanding? And you've had the opportunity to do that in a range of different ways and different question types.

Thank you so much for taking part in our lesson today.

It's a real pleasure working with you on these lessons and looking at how the media holds those in power to account.

I hope you've enjoyed the lesson and found the tasks interesting.

If you're able to, could you please take a picture of your work and ask your parent or carer to share it with your teacher so they can see all the fantastic things you've learned today? And if you'd like to, ask your parent or carer to send a picture of your work to ask @OakNational on Twitter, and then I'll be able to see the lovely work that you've produced and your essays.

That would be fantastic, thank you.

So, very well done.

Don't forget now just to go back and complete the exit quiz.

So, really good luck with that.

And all that's left for me to say is thank you and take care, and enjoy the rest of your learning today.