Media Studies A Level is a fascinating course that will help you think about all the media texts that you use in a new and more critical way. The subject involves the close analysis of the images, sounds, and text that we experience via the media and the messages and values that they convey. It is the study of individual media texts (TV programs, magazines, newspapers, video games, film marketing materials, and music videos), and, on a wider scale, you will be required to question how the media impacts contemporary society. It also enables you to develop some practical skills applicable to a range of careers. As the specification has been designed in close consultation with industry professionals and academics, it includes a strong theoretical approach. Media Studies A Level consists of three components: • Component 1: Media Products, Industries and Audiences • Component 2: Media Forms and Products in Depth • Component 3: Cross-Media Production In the first year you will; • Learn the skills of textual analysis (Component 1). This will involve deconstructing a wide range of media texts, including set products, in terms of their technical features and how these features are used to create meanings for a range of audiences. • Explore and debate how different groups are represented in society. For example, how ideas about gender, age, ethnicity, and national identities are constructed and the reasons for this. • Explore media coverage of key contemporary events and issues, learning to question and challenge the messages that you receive. As part of this process, you will apply a range of academic theories, critically, to media texts. You will also learn about the historical, social, and contexts that impact the nature of those representations. A key part of the first year of study is also the exploration of audience and industry i.e. how ownership, technological change, and the desire to attract and maintain audiences, impact on media products. • Begin your coursework (Component 3). This will provide you with the opportunity to show your understanding of the codes and conventions of different media forms, through the practical production of your coursework materials. This will involve comprehensive research that will inform your designs. The briefs will be set by the exam board each year and might include options like producing a range of marketing materials for a new film, including posters and a podcast, or creating a music video and accompanying promotional magazine pages. In the second year, you will complete Component 3. In the second year you will; • Complete Component 2 (exam), which is a study in-depth paper. • Explore the television, magazine, and online media industries (including social media and vlogging). • Study a foreign language text as well as a British one, to compare industry practice and content. • Compare texts from the 1960s with those produced today, considering industry issues and how messages and values have changed as society has changed. You will also look at the differences between independently produced texts and those produced by larger organizations.