Media Studies
BackMedia studies is the study of communication through a range of media forms. It teaches media literacy: the ability to identify and analyse media messages as well as to react and reflect on their intent and purpose.
Year 10
The Media Department strive to develop students’ love and relationship with the media as a whole. To study Media Studies at Aylesford; students will expect to develop their skills of enquiry, critical thinking, decision-making and analysis through a deepening knowledge and understanding of media issues that are current and historic. Students will be exposed to all areas of the media and will garner a love for the subject through the diversity of the topics studied. Students will use their knowledge and skills of the wider media to produce their own media product, thus enabling students to develop their deepening understanding of the processes of the media.
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Students study Component 1: Exploring the Media and establish the foundations for their Component 3: Non-Exam Assessment (NEA). Component 1, Section A: Media Language and Representation Media Language Fundamentals: How media language is selected, combined, and excluded to construct narratives, convey points of view, and communicate specific ideological values. Semiotics & Analysis: Applying foundational semiotic principles, focusing on the mechanics of denotation and connotation across print platforms. Narrative & Genre Theories: Applying narrative structures (including those derived from Vladimir Propp) and genre theories (repetition, variation, hybridity, and intertextuality). Set Print Products: In-depth textual and context analysis of set products:
The Power of Representation: Analysing how the media re-presents the world; the choices producers make regarding gender, ethnicity, age, issues, and social groups; the functions of stereotyping; and issues of under-representation. Media Contexts: Evaluating how print products reflect their historical, social, cultural, and political contexts. Component 1, Section B: Media Industries and Audiences Industry Dynamics: Exploring media production, the effects of conglomerate ownership, vertical integration, diversification, and commercial vs. public funding models. Regulation: Investigating the roles, types, and ongoing challenges of regulating media in a digital age. Audience Targeting & Consumption: Analysing how organisations categorise and target mass vs. specialised audiences, and how audiences consume and interpret media differently. Set Industry/Audience Products:
Component 3: Creating Media Products
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Year 10 Assessment Points:
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Key Vocabulary media language, representation, stereotype, anchorage, connotation, denotation, ideology, audience positioning, regulation, circulation, distribution, production, participatory media, convergence, synergy, narrative, genre conventions. |
Enrichment
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Year 11
Across KS4, learners develop a secure understanding of the media through analytical study and practical production. They learn to interpret meaning, evaluate representations, understand industry processes and create media products with purpose and impact. The curriculum ensures students are fully prepared for GCSE assessment and equipped with transferable skills for further study and future careers in the media sector.
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Students transition to Component 2: Understanding Media Forms and Products and complete their formal Component 3: Non-Exam Assessment (NEA). Component 2, Section A: Television in Depth (Crime Drama or Sitcom) Genre Evolution over Time: Studying how TV genres adapt in response to cultural shifts, historical events, and industry changes. Students analysed one contemporary complete episode alongside a 10-minute historical extract.
TV Industry & Consumption: Analysing the impact of public service broadcasting vs. commercial broadcasting, and the rise of global, on-demand streaming platforms (ITVX, iPlayer, Netflix). Component 2, Section B: Music Video and Online Media Visual Analysis: Evaluating how music videos use visual codes (mise-en-scène, costume, lighting), technical codes (camerawork, composition), and audio-visual editing to construct representations. Set Music Videos:
Online, Social & Participatory Media: Exploring how artists build global brands using official websites and multi-platform social media spaces to drive audience engagement and self-representation. Component 3: Creating Media Products (Completion) Statement of Aims: Writing a highly focused, 250-word formal document outlining the intent, target audience, and selected codes and conventions of their production. Production Realisation: Developing an individual, high-quality media product (such as print marketing or a video sequence) using original footage, images, and copy. Revision of examination content from Component 1 and Component 2 |
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Year 11 Assessment Points:
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Key Vocabulary media language, representation, stereotype, anchorage, connotation, denotation, ideology, audience positioning, regulation, circulation, distribution, production, participatory media, convergence, synergy, narrative, genre conventions. |
Enrichment
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