Study

The course will help you develop three relationships with the media. As a consumer you will become more aware of the many ways in which media messages are presented to us. You will also discover how the institutions, which produce and shape media products, are trying to reach you. By producing and evaluating your own media productions you will have hands on understanding of how media messages are created and what they are trying to do.

The course is divided up into three units:

Media Messages: In this unit you will complete two linked in depth studies that focus on contemporary news in the UK, requiring learners to explore how and why newspapers and their online counterparts are evolving as media products and the relationship between both online and offline news. You will also study issues surrounding media language and representation in magazines, advertising and marketing and music videos.

Evolving Media: This unit explores media industries and audiences, through radio, video games and film. We also complete an in-depth study of television as an evolving, global media form. We look at contemporary English language long form TV drama (for example ‘House of Cards’ and ‘Stranger Things’) and a non-English language long form TV drama to inform their study. These texts are set by the exam board and are subject to change.

Making Media: This coursework (or NEA) unit gives you the opportunity to create a cross media product in response to a brief that is set by the exam board.

Assessment

There are three assessment elements to the course:

• Media Messages (external two hour examination: 35%)

• Evolving Media (external two hour examination: 35%)

• Making Media (NEA/coursework element: 30%)

What Next?

A Level Media Studies is a great introduction to a career in the media or communications. It goes well with Graphics, Photography, English Language and Sociology as A Level subjects.

Media Studies Subject Leader: Mrs Lisa Herbertson

Syllabus: OCR

Course Specification: 2570

Qualification: A Level