AQA examiner's report June 2015

GCSE Media Studies

Investigating the Media/Unit 1 48101; Television News Report on the Examination 4810 June 2015 Version: 1.0

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REPORT ON THE EXAMINATION – GCSE MEDIA STUDIES – 48101 – JUNE 2015

Overview Marking this paper proved to be very enjoyable and it was clear that the vast majority of centres had prepared their students very well for the examination. Television News is perhaps not a topic which obviously interests and excites teenagers today. Therefore, it was very pleasing to see the level of engagement that most students clearly displayed with the topic through their responses to the paper. In the published AQA Teacher Guidance centres had been advised that students needed to research, in depth, examples of television news programmes/channels in preparation for this examination. It was apparent that this advice had been used to good effect as a wide range of programmes and channels were offered across the entry. BBC, ITV and Sky News were, understandably, the most popular choices. However, there were many other examples offered: Newsround, Channel 4 but also some global networks – CNN, Fox, Al Jezeera. It was encouraging to see that fewer centres have limited their students by preparing them to work with the same two examples. There was also evidence of individual research and engagement with the topic with reference made to the coverage of particular news stories/events. Popular choices included the 2015 General Election, the Alton Towers rollercoaster accident and FIFA corruption.

The format of the paper is now well established and the important relationship between the Preliminary Material and the Question Paper should never be underestimated. The Preliminary Material always takes the form of a brief. Importantly, it always contains guidance to students to inform their final preparation during the four weeks leading up to the examination itself. Teachers have always been encouraged to read and discuss this material with their students to ensure their students are confident moving forward with their individual preparation. Therefore, it was disappointing to still see some students who had failed to notice the requirement to research news programmes. Some responses were limited in the marks that could be awarded for AO1 as they had only referred to one example. A small number of students also used some of the stories from the Preliminary Material in their response to Task 1 – which could not be rewarded at all under AO1.

In contrast, students confident in working to the brief paid close attention to what was being asked of them. There were frequent references made throughout the paper to TNN/The News Network and picked up on what their ‘client’ had requested from them in the brief. Similarly, an increasing number of students appear to have grasped the notion of responding in role. Such responses were a pleasure to read and scored highly under AO3 which rewards how work is presented and shaped. Where centres had encouraged their students to respond in role, and where this was done well, students were able to pick up marks throughout the paper on AO3.

The use of appropriate media terminology is also rewarded under AO3. Here examiners felt there was an opportunity for centres to develop their work. Most students grasped – and used to good effect – some key terms, such as ‘hard’ and ‘soft’ news. However, there is still evidence of some students regurgitating, often ill-fitting, theories and struggling to adapt these to the demands of the questions asked in the paper. There was more evidence of students utilising other forms of presentation than continuous prose – several used bullet points and diagrams to good effect.

These approaches, when done well, should always be encouraged.

There is continued clear evidence that students are coping well with the demands of responding to four tasks in 90 minutes. There were fewer incomplete scripts than in previous years. The quality and quantity of the work that some students produce in the given time frame continues to delight and surprise examiners.

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REPORT ON THE EXAMINATION – GCSE MEDIA STUDIES – 48101 – JUNE 2015

Task 1 This year, students were asked to respond to three bullet points with reference to two examples of television news programmes. This gave opportunity to produce work which showed breadth and depth of knowledge and understanding.

Many students showed close and detailed knowledge of their chosen examples and usually the three bullet points were successfully addressed. Some used the approach of using a bullet point as a sub-heading and covered each in turn. However, many examiners commented on having marking scripts where there was imbalance, coverage of only two bullet points and some responses that demonstrated only implicit handling of bullet points.

It was good to see a wide range of examples being used and most students seemed well prepared to discuss how news programmes engaged audiences. The second bullet point ‘engagement with the target audience’ was the most confidently addressed overall. Responses often discussed the presentation of the news, the role of the presenter, the impact of e-Media and how the selection of news is tailored to different audiences.

The first bullet point ‘up-to-date coverage of important events’ was generally covered with success.

Students often explained the importance through the use of rolling news/24 hour channels and news tickers. Many also made reference to the use of social media. However, some students interpreted this bullet point as a discussion of news selection of ‘important events’ and missed the focus on up-to-date coverage.

The third bullet ‘accurate, fair and balanced reporting’ was often the differentiator on the task.

Although some students were able to make use of recent news stories to illustrate bias or balance and sophisticated responses were sometimes able to explain how no news programme can ever be totally impartial; generally, this bullet point was addressed with less confidence. Some responses referred to the role of OFCOM without specific illustration of particular news programmes or stories.

Some students produced good arguments for news programmes failing to meet the bullet points.

However, a few weaker responses merely dismissed news programmes as boring and failing to engage.

Unfortunately, there were instances of students ignoring the requirements of the task by making generic comments about Television News without specific examples of particular news programmes.

Task 2 This task was clearly set up in the Preliminary Material and students showed a good level of engagement with the six stories provided in the brief.

There was no preferred combination of stories expected and students successfully offered a wide range of selections. Most students were able to structure their news bulletin and provide at least a fair rationale for their selection.

Stronger responses were able to apply knowledge of news values and media audiences to their explanations and justification of choice of news stories. Overall, students were able to offer

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REPORT ON THE EXAMINATION – GCSE MEDIA STUDIES – 48101 – JUNE 2015

considered reasons for their ideas with a strong focus on meeting the needs of their target audience.

Unfortunately, there were some instances of students ignoring the requirements of the task by presenting their ‘pre-prepared pitch’ for a news programme. Some made suggestions which would have been best placed in Task 4. For example, presenters and studio design. With the focus of Task 2 very much on the selection of news stories and the running order and the appropriateness of these to the target audience, responses that deviated too much from this were self-penalising as such responses lacked the depth of required comment about explanation and justification of chosen news stories.

Task 3 The storyboard is a well-established task for this paper. However, there was a surprising number of centres whose students lacked confidence in handling the conventions of storyboarding. However, most students do now appear to be well versed in producing storyboards. Even fairly unambitious responses could be awarded well for AO1 when there was an understanding of basic shot descriptions and edits, timings and voice-over. It was pleasing to see many responses that displayed a creative understanding of camera movement, lighting and effects, as well as the usual shot descriptions.

Successful designs recognised the importance of appealing to the target audience, and there were frequent creative and imaginative ideas offered with a clear persuasive impact. The importance of branding, with News Burst/TNN logos created and use of social media icons often added to the overall impact.

Unfortunately, several students produced a storyboard for an entire news programme and missed the question’s clear requirement of the ‘opening title sequence’. There were many successful interpretations of what an opening title sequence could look like, however. Storyboards generally tended to either be based around snippets of the chosen news stories or the News Burst brand.

Both these approaches were valid, and the best responses managed to tailor the sequence to their youth audience.

Task 4 Most students responded successfully to this task. Very few failed to include an aspect of e-Media, and a number made all of their selections based on e-Media. There was a pleasing level of engagement displayed in responses to this task with some highly creative and imaginative suggestions offered and the potential appeal to the target audience explained.

Popular suggestions included: websites, apps, Facebook, Twitter and Instagram. Pleasingly, suggestions often moved beyond generic explanations of how such examples could be used – to connect with the audience – and offered detailed and well-considered justifications. Other effective suggestions referred to news selection, presenters, the studio and advertising/marketing.

The best responses were able to make convincing arguments as to how their suggestions would engage their target audience.

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REPORT ON THE EXAMINATION – GCSE MEDIA STUDIES – 48101 – JUNE 2015

Conclusion Once again centres should be congratulated and thanked for their hard work and creativity in preparing students for this paper. We recognise the demands of preparing for a new topic. The determination and enthusiasm teachers display in rising to this challenge is to be admired. This is especially true this year, working with a topic that is not obviously engaging for a teenage audience. It is hoped that the comments and advice contained in this report will help centres to confidently prepare their students for the 2016 Unit 1 topic: Science Fiction Films.

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REPORT ON THE EXAMINATION – GCSE MEDIA STUDIES – 48101 – JUNE 2015

Mark Ranges and Award of Grades Grade boundaries and cumulative percentage grades are available on the Results Statistics page of the AQA Website.

Converting Marks into UMS marks Convert raw marks into Uniform Mark Scale (UMS) marks by using the link below.

UMS conversion calculator

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