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| It's a bit late this year because I was on leave, but here's the week-by-week. Click to see full size |
This term is a bit weird
It's weird because of covid. One the one hand the various measures we've had to live with are drawing to a close. Yet on the other hand, there are still certain restrictions and considerations we need to follow.
First years
After (finally) finishing the newspaper industry, we'll be moving on to the magazine industry, which may surprise you with hat issues it raises. We'll be looking at two magazines, a stereotypical woman's lifestyle magazine published in the 1960's, and a recently published anti-capitalist, avant-garde magazine published far more recently. This topic is assessed at a much higher level than anything we've done so far, which means we're going to be going in to more detail regarding concepts such as sexism, racism, climate change, patriarchal hegemony and capitalist hegemony. It's a great opportunity to get argumentative!
Towards the end of the magazine unit, you'll also be producing your own, high end fashion magazine as a class. It's a great opportunity to practice your Photoshop and design skills before we commence the actual coursework.
After the magazine industry has finished, we'll be looking at music videos, with two very different examples of the medium in very different genres. Music videos is an assessed subject that could come up in component one, but it's also what your coursework is going to be based on, so, covid willing, we'll also be running a short practical task at the end of the short unit, where you'll remake the first 30 seconds of an 80's music video we'll give you. It's going to be silly, and it's going to be a great way to free yourself from your inhibitions before you begin planning your music video straight after Easter!
Second years
The radio industry was a very short topic, and frankly very straightforward. The videogame industry is also short, being only two week long, but it's a little more complicated. You'll be looking in particular at the Assassin's Creed franchise, but we'll also be considering videogame experiences in a variety of genres, and, yes, this means we will be playing games!
Straight after that is your final unit: online media, which is possibly the most full on and certainly the most contentious unit you will have done: there's a reason we save it until last! There's loads of stuff to talk about, from body image to hyperreality, and from conspiracy theories to LGBTQ+ representation. We hope you enjoy this one! There is a mock exam, rather inconveniently placed in the penultimate week of the unit, but you can't have everything.
Finally, for the final two weeks of the half term, we'll start revision. This is done fast and concisely. We will focus specifically on essay writing and exam technique. These lessons are a little dry, but they're essential. By Easter, we will have revised advertising, film and newspapers.
Monday 7th February
On this day, it will be announced what changes (if any!) will be made to the assessment of A-levels, including A-level Media Studies. We do not wish to speculate, but it has been reported that elements of the final exam may be removed. Of course, we will share this information with you guys the second we have the information
Thursday 11th and Friday 12th February
These days are admission days. Next year's students will be interviewed on these days. Do not come in! And don't come in for the whole of the next week, because it's half term. Time moves quickly!
Monday 7th March
The biggest change to the timetable is that second years are having a mock exam week in the week starting 7th March. This will involve taking every student off timetable for a full week to accommodate it. It's far from ideal. The idea behind this is we may need more robust data if exams are cancelled again. But please remember that it is looking increasingly unlikely that exams will be cancelled.