“God’s creative activity went far beyond the minimum requirements for getting the job done. Butterflies in the rain forest seldom seen by human eyes are creatures of breathtaking beauty. The delicate transparency of the man-of-war and the hummingbird’s wing are inimitable” Le Roy Koopman
Overview
We interact with the media every day, and the way we use the media is always changing. The media influences the way in which people spend their time and how people perceive themselves and others, both positively and negatively. This study encourages students to analyse and evaluate media products, production processes and policies through studying media forms which include traditional media forms such as radio, film, print media and television, as well as digital and social media. This study encourages students to consider the media they consume and create with greater intentionality and thoughtfulness.
CONTENT
UNIT 1: MEDIA FORMS, REPRESENTATIONS AND AUSTRALIAN STORIES
In this unit, students develop an understanding of audiences and the core concepts underpinning the construction of representations and meaning in different media forms. They explore media codes and conventions and the construction of meaning in media products. Students analyse how representations, narrative and media codes and conventions contribute to the construction of the media realities audiences engage with and read. Students gain an understanding of audiences as producers and consumers of media products. They develop research skills to investigate and analyse selected narratives focusing on the influence of media professionals on production genre and style. Students develop an understanding of the features of Australian fictional and non-fictional narratives in different media forms. Students work in a range of media forms and develop and produce representations to demonstrate an understanding of the characteristics of each media form, and how they contribute to the communication of meaning.
Outcome 1: MEDIA REPRESENTATIONS
On completion of this unit, the student should be able to explain how media representations in a range of media products and forms, and from different periods of time, locations and contexts, are constructed, distributed, engaged with, consumed and read by audiences.
Outcome 2: MEDIA FORMS IN PRODUCTION
On completion of this unit, the student should be able to use the media production process to design, produce and evaluate media representations for specified audiences in a range of media forms.
Outcome 3: AUSTRALIAN STORIES
On completion of this unit the student should be able to analyse how the structural features of Australian fictional and non-fictional narratives in two or more media forms engage, and are consumed and read by, audiences.
UNIT 2: NARRATIVE ACROSS MEDIA FORMS
Fictional and non-fictional narratives are fundamental to the media and are found in all media forms. Media industries such as journalism and filmmaking are built upon the creation and distribution of narratives constructed in the form of a series of interconnected images, sounds and/or words, and using media codes and conventions. New media forms and technologies enable participants to design, create and distribute narratives in user-generated content, which challenges the traditional understanding of narrative form and content. In this unit, students further develop an understanding of the concept of narrative in media products and forms in different contexts. Narratives in both traditional and newer forms include film, television, sound, news, print, photography, games, and interactive digital forms. Students analyse the influence of developments in media technologies on individuals and society, examining in a range of media forms the effects of media convergence and hybridisation on the design, production and distribution of narratives in the media and audience engagement, consumption and reception. Students undertake production activities to design and create narratives that demonstrate an awareness of the structures and media codes and conventions appropriate to corresponding media forms.
Outcome 1: NARRATIVE, STYLE AND GENRE
On completion of this unit the student should be able to analyse the intentions of media creators and producers and the influences of narratives on the audience in different media forms.
Outcome 2: NARRATIVES IN PRODUCTION
On completion of this unit the student should be able to apply the media production process to create, develop and construct narratives.
Outcome 3: MEDIA AND CHANGE
On completion of this unit the student should be able to discuss the influence of new media technologies on society, audiences, the individual, media industries and institutions.
UNIT 3: MEDIA NARRATIVES AND PRE-PRODUCTION
AREAS OF STUDY
Narrative and Ideology
Narratives are fundamental to the relationship between the media and its audiences. Ideologies in society frame the nature, form and structure of narratives. Audiences and the media together frame the nature, form and development of discourses in society through the construction, distribution, reception and consumption of narratives that implicitly or explicitly comment on, reflect on, develop, reject or ignore ideologies. Media narratives are the product of creative and institutional practices that represent ideas through media codes and conventions. The use of media codes and conventions influences audience engagement, consumption and reading of narratives. Other influential factors include the social, cultural, ideological and institutional contexts relating to the period of time and location in which the media narrative was produced, the purpose of the media narrative, the genre, style, content, particulars of distribution and consumption and reception. Students examine fictional narratives in the form of two feature length films. On completion of this unit the student should be able to analyse how narratives are constructed and distributed, and how they engage, are consumed and are read by the intended audience and present day audiences.
Media Production Development
Media productions develop out of that which has come before. Media creators and producers frequently reference ideas and techniques that have been developed by others. Collecting, acknowledging and building upon ideas, structures, aesthetics and techniques informs the direction of media productions and an understanding of how audiences are engaged.
Students investigate and research a selected media form to inform the development of their proposed production. This research contributes to the direction of their production design. Students conduct an investigation of aspects of the media form in which they will work, developing knowledge of narrative, genre, style, media codes and conventions and aspects of the works of media practitioners relevant to their proposed production. Students develop production skills that inform the production, design and development of a media product. They record their learning in documented research, annotated production activities, experiments, exercises and reflections.
Media Production Design
Media production designs are a set of written and visual documents that detail the stages of production of a proposed product. The production design communicates both creative vision and thorough planning. Audience engagement consumption and reception is at the heart of media production. Audiences may be delineated by demographic or social factors, identified by their interests and experience in media works, forms, genres or styles, or created by media institutions or individual producers for a particular purpose. Detailed articulation of audience/s and how they will be engaged underpins all aspects of a media production design. Informed by their learning in Area of Study 2, students use industry specific design and planning, both in written and visual documentation, to complete a media production design. The design incorporates a clear fictional and/ or non-fictional narrative for a specified audience in a selected media form as outlined below. Students take into account the relevant media codes and conventions of the selected media form. The production design is developed for one of the following media forms:
UNIT 4: MEDIA PRODUCTION AND ISSUES IN THE MEDIA
AREAS OF STUDY
Media Production
The production, post-production and distribution stages of a media product are a natural progression from the pre-production stage of the media production process. Students move from production into post-production where the manipulation, arrangement or layering of the ideas and material generated in pre-production and production leads to the realisation of their production design. Media creators and producers reflect on and work with others to gain insight into whether their products communicate their planned intent, refining their products in the production and post-production stages. Students undertake personal reflection and seek feedback on their work, developing, refining and resolving their product as a result. They document iterations of their production after considering the factors that have influenced the development, refinement of materials, technologies and processes, the resolution of ideas and the effect they have had on the final product. The creation and production of the media product is an individual undertaking. On completion of this unit the student should be able to produce, refine and resolve a media product designed in Unit 3.
Agency and Control in and of the media
The relationship between the media and audiences has never been more complex. The contemporary media landscape poses issues and challenges for the way that academics and commentators have traditionally theorised the nature of communication. The media has always been considered to have the capacity to influence, but now the balance of power is shifting and arguments around who influences who have become highly contested. The media and its audiences are now both thought to exercise agency; the capacity to act and exert power. Today the media not only produces and distributes content to audiences, it also generates and sustains social networks, which have, in turn, enabled new modes of production, distribution, consumption and reception based on the sharing of commercial and user-generated content. As the media increasingly crosses national borders, governments struggle to maintain control over the laws and policies created for their jurisdictions. These issues pose challenges for managing and regulating the use of the media by globalised media institutions, governments and the individual. On completion of this unit the student should be able to discuss issues of agency and control in the relationship between the media and its audience.
BIBLICAL PERSPECTIVE
The media's influence upon society has been profound. In teaching students to analyse and evaluate the media, this study encourages students to critically examine the media from a Christian worldview. God has also designed us to be creative beings, and students are encouraged to use their God-given creativity to produce thoughtful, inspired media products.
ASSESSMENT
UNITS 1 & 2
Assessment tasks are selected from: Audiovisual or video sequences, Radio or audio sequences, Photographs, Print layouts, Sequences or presentations using digital technologies, Posters, Written responses,Oral reports
UNIT 3
School-Assessed Coursework
|
Outcomes |
Assessment Tasks |
Marks Allocated* |
|
Outcome 1 Analyse how narratives are constructed and distributed, and how they engage, are consumed and are read by the intended audience and present day audiences. |
|
40 |
|
TOTAL MARKS |
40 |
|
|
*School–assessed coursework for Unit 3 contributes 10% to the study score |
||
School-Assessed Task
|
Outcomes |
Components of the school-assessed task |
Marks Allocated |
|
Outcome 2 Research aspects of a media form and experiment with media technologies and media production processes to inform and document the design of a media production. |
|
The School-assessed Task for Units 3 and 4 will contribute 40% to the study score |
|
Outcome 3 Develop and document a media production design in a selected media form for a specified audience. |
A media production design plan based on the selected media form identified in Unit 3, Outcome 2. |
The School-assessed Task for Units 3 and 4 will contribute 40% to the study score |
UNIT 4
School-Assessed Coursework
|
Outcomes |
Assessment Tasks |
Marks Allocated* |
|
Outcome 2 Discuss issues of agency and control in the relationship between the media and its audience. |
|
40 |
|
TOTAL MARKS |
40 |
|
|
*School –assessed coursework for Unit 4 contributes 10% to the study score |
||
School-Assessed Task
|
Outcomes |
Components of the school-assessed task |
Marks allocated |
|
Unit 4 Outcome 1 Produce, refine and resolve a media product for an identified audience from the media production design plan prepared by the student in Unit 3 |
A media product developed from the media production design produced in Unit 3 |
The School-assessed Task for Units 3 and 4 will contribute 40% to the study score |
EXTERNAL ASSESSMENT
The level of achievement for Units 3 and 4 is also assessed by an end-of-year examination, which will contribute 40%
"Listen to this, Job; stop and consider God's wonders. Job 37:14