Clarification details
Updated December 2017. This document has been updated to address issues that have arisen from moderation.
Context
The focus of this standard is on the relationship between a media representation and society and/or its context. For Achieved, the description and its effects should be sufficiently detailed to reflect level 7 of the curriculum, where students are expected to be able to ‘examine media contexts’.
Clear representation
Students must clearly describe a representation of a group, issue, idea, place or event. Their response should also include a description of the features used to create the representation and the effect of the representation.
Students may be given the representation to investigate, or may choose their own in consultation with the teacher. It is important that texts chosen for study are relevant to the specific topic and will allow students to discuss features that create the representation.
Discussion of representation rather than isolated responses
Students should avoid the close reading of individual texts. They should discuss the representation and texts collectively, rather than looking at separate representations in each of the chosen texts. When discussing conclusions, these need to be based around the representation rather than the individual texts.
Use of Evidence
Students need to provide detailed evidence to support their discussion. When discussing the effect and implications of the representation, students should use supported examples from at least three media texts, and from other sources, rather than relying on their own observations.
Merit and Excellence
To reach Merit and Excellence, students need only discuss 1-2 of the aspects listed under Explanatory Note 2.