1. INTRODUCTION TO
SECTION A

2. G325: CRITICAL PERSPECTIVES IN
MEDIA
The examination is two hours. Candidates are required to
answer two compulsory questions, on their own production
work, and one question from a choice of six topic areas.
 Section A: Theoretical Evaluation of Production ( 50
marks)
 1a) Theoretical evaluation of skill development over the course of the
two years (both AS and A2 c/w productions including preliminary and
ancillary tasks)
 1b) Theoretical evaluation of one production and evaluate it in
relation to a media concept
 Section B: Contemporary Media Issues ( 50 marks)
 Contemporary Media Issues - Media and Collective Identity – The
Representation of British youth and youth culture

3. TIMING
 Section A: Theoretical Evaluation of Production (50 marks) –
1 hour
 1a) Theoretical evaluation of skill development over the course
of the two years (both AS and A2 c/w productions including
preliminary and ancillary tasks) (25 marks)
30 min
 1b) Theoretical evaluation of one production and evaluate it in
relation to a media concept (25 marks)
30 min
 Section B: Contemporary Media Issues (50 marks) – 1 hour
 Contemporary Media Issues - Media and Collective Identity –
The Representation of British youth and youth culture

4. QUESTION 1A
 Question 1(a) requires candidates to describe and evaluate
their skills development over the course of their production
work, from Foundation Portfolio AND Advanced Portfolio.
 The focus of this evaluation must be on skills
development, and the question will require them to adapt this
to one or two specific production practices.
 The list of practices to which questions will relate is as
follows:
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Digital Technology
Creativity
Research and planning
Post-production
Using conventions from real media texts

5. QUESTION 1B
 Question 1(b) requires candidates to select one production
and evaluate it in relation to a media concept.
 The list of concepts to which questions will relate is as
follows:
 Genre
 Narrative
 Representation
 Audience
 Media language
 Where candidates have produced relevant work outside the
context of their A Level media course, they are free to
additionally refer to this experience.

6. QUESTION 1B CONT…
 In the examination, questions will be set using one of
these concepts only.
 In some circumstances, candidates will be expected
to select the production that appears to relate most
effectively to the specific concept that arises in the
exam question.
 However, the requirement for candidates to evaluate
one of their productions in relation to a concept does
not assume that the concept will necessarily always
fit easily and in an orthodox way. Thus in some cases
candidates will be describing their productions in
terms of them not relating straightforwardly to the
concept

7. YOUR COURSEWORK
 You will need to know your own coursework projects in
detail, and be able to recall and analyse your own work in
relation to each of these concepts.
 Question 1a – Both AS and A2 coursework
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Digital Technology
Creativity
Research and planning
Post-production
Using conventions from real media texts
 Question 1b – Either AS or A2 coursework
 Genre
 Narrative
 Representation
 Audience
 Media language

8. SECTION A, QUESTION 1A
– SKILLS EVALUATION OF
PRODUCTION

9. PREVIOUS QUESTIONS
Jan 2010
Describe how you developed research and planning skills for media production and
evaluate how these skills contributed to creative decision making. Refer to a range of
example in your answer to show how these skills developed over time
June 2010
Describe the ways in which your production work was informed by research into real
media texts and how your ability to use such research for production developed over time
Jan 2011
Describe how you developed your skills in the use of digital technology for media
production and evaluate how these skills contributed to your creative decision making.
Refer to a range of examples in your answer to show how these skills.
June 2011
Explain how far your understanding of the conventions of existing media influenced the
way you created your own media products. Refer to a range of examples in your answer to
show how this understanding developed over time.
Jan 2012
Describe how your analysis of the conventions of real media texts informed your own
creative practise. Refer to a range of examples in your answer to show how these skills
have been developed over time.

10. WHAT IS IT ABOUT?
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What did you do?
How did you do it?
How did your skills develop?
All supported with specific examples
In relation to the area(s) in question

11. CRITICAL REFLECTION
 Reflective practice is a skill that is much sought after and is
highly regarded by universities and employers. This goes
beyond evaluations of the outcomes; we are not simply
thinking about strengths and weaknesses.
 This is probably the most dif ficult part of the A2 course.

12. DIGITAL TECHNOLOGYHARDWARE, SOFT WARE AND ONLINE
 For this topic, you need to consider the impact of the new
technologies you have used on your consumption and
production of media texts.
 Consider how you have presented your work; have you used
blogs?
 How has the internet supported your skills development?
 Consider the pro’s and con’s of the digital technology you
have used

13. ICT/DIGITAL TECHNOLOGY
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How did AS compare to A 2?
Blogs/websites
Slideshare
Prezi
Any online questionnaires
Film and upload to YouTube (audience questionnaires and
feedback)
Vlogs
Post it note film/stop frame animations
Digital photography
Software and hardware

14. DIGITAL TECHNOLOGY
 You need to consider the skills you have learnt during AS with the
following sof tware:
 Adobe Photoshop. The image manipulation program allowed you to
manipulate graphics necessar y for the magazine. E.g. crop tools such
as Marquee (magic wand), Lassos, and colour conver ters such as Red
Eye Corrector, Colour Variations, Colour Dropper, Dodge and Burn, text
tools, picture boxes, shape tools, photograph manipulation, layer s etc.
How the sof tware allowed you to create a realistic product through
layout/font/logo/colour manipulation etc.
 Final Cut Pro . The editing sof tware allowed you to add specific
transitions/sound ef fects/manipulate time (temporal relations)…etc.
 LiveType to make titles.
 Weblogs. e.g. blogger which allowed you to regularly post about your
research & planning, progress and to display your final piece. It also
enabled you to leave comments (audience feedback) on each other’s
blogs….

15. DIGITAL TECHNOLOGY
 You need to consider the skills you have learnt from AS to A 2
with the following hardware:
 Digital stills cameras
 Lighting
 Video cameras
 Tripods
 Mac
 External hard drive to back up work

16. DIGITAL TECHNOLOGY
 What are the pros and cons of the software and hardware you
used at AS and A2 in terms of skills development?
 How did you use your skills to aid the construction of your
task?
 Be really really specific with your examples

17. CREATIVIT Y
 It is important not to assume one answer to any question!
 Rather than ask yourself the question, "How have I become
more creative during my A level course?", ask yourself, "Have
I become more creative?".
 If you answer the second question, then you will evaluate your
progress much more thoroughly.
 Consider the pro’s and con’s of the technology you have used
and how this has impacted on your creativity

18. CREATIVIT Y
 Creativity involves thinking or behaving imaginatively. It might
involve challenging conventions or replicating / furthering
knowledge of them – what did you do in your c/w?
 You need to think about the decisions that were made for you
(the restrictions put on you by the exam board) e.g. you must
make a music magazine. Then consider the creative choices
you made e.g. which type of music magazine? Etc.

19. CREATIVIT Y
 How creative do you think you were in the decisions you made
when creating your c/w?
 Did the technology enhance your creativity or not?
 What ideas did you communicate and what stylistic
techniques did you use? How did it relate to your
interests/vision of identity?
 Was your product influenced by your social environmental?
 Was this original or did you add something extra to an original
media text?
 Would you take any creative skills into future projects or have
you been influenced to engage these skills in any other
projects?

20. RESEARCH AND PLANNING
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Consider the following:
How you reviewed real text examples and discuss conventions
Analysis of old student work and discuss marking criteria
How you planned the micro elements
Research into audience expectations
How you reviewed your own progress and update your plans.

21. RESEARCH AND PLANNING
 Think about the types of research you carried out:
 Primary –
films, magazines, internet, questionnaires, audience feedback
 Secondary – internet, textbooks, blogs for theories
 Advantages/Disadvantages of your sources:
 Cost of magazines etc
 Accessibility – easy to find?
 Time consuming?
 Reliability of sources?
 Accuracy of sources?
 Usefulness of sources?

22. RESEARCH AND PLANNING
 How did you organise your research and planning? E.g.
labels, blog etc
 What did you research?
 How did drafting help you?
 How did audience feedback improve your planning?
 How organised were you?
 What did you learn about working as part of a group or
independently?
 How did you present your research and planning? E.g.
wordle, moodboard, flickr, scribd, slideshare etc

23. POST-PRODUCTION
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Consider the following:
How you made decisions about editing and layout
Influence of audience expectations
Photo manipulation

24. POST-PRODUCTION
 Post Production at AS might have consisted of editing images
and putting text together in Photoshop. This is very similar to
the software listed as part of Digital technology
 You need to identify all of the steps you took once you had
photographed – to do this accurately it will be helpful to look
at your work and make a list of everything you did in order to
get to the finished stage.
 Post-production is everything that happens after
photographing.

25. USING CONVENTIONS OF REAL MEDIA TEXTS
 Each of your 3 practical projects had a specific set of
conventions.
 For this topic, you need to consider how your understanding
has developed over the course.
 Begin by make a note of the conventions of each of the
genres you created.
 Then pick 2 or 3 of these conventions and say how you used
them within your own work
 Don't forget to ask yourself how useful it is to understand and
apply real conventions AND why your ability to apply this
understanding has improved over the course.

26. USING CONVENTIONS FROM REAL MEDIA
TEXTS
 What conventions of music magazines did you apply to your
c/w?
 Identify real media texts and explain how your text is similar
and dif ferent.
 “Creativity is always constrained by generic conventions”. To
what extent did you adhere to or subvert generic conventions
in the creation of your media products.

27. QUESTION 1A REVISION
 You should analyse both your AS and A 2 coursework
pieces, applying each of them to the key concepts that you might
be asked about
 These notes should be detailed and use specific examples from
your coursework. The more detailed these notes are, the more
useful they will be as revision aids
 There are several ways you can layout these notes, for example
the grid shown on the next slide, or a mind map. Make sure your
layout works for you and your own style of learning.
 Which ever way you lay them out, make sure they are detailed
and specific. These will form the basis of your revision for this
section of the exam

28. ONE SUGGESTED LAYOUT
Concept
Digital Technology
Creativity
Research and planning
Post-production
Using conventions from
real media texts
AS Coursework
A2 Coursework