Year 12 Media Studies - Exam Advice

Year 12 Media Studies Exam Advice

Timings

2 ½ Hours in total.

3 Minutes reading exam

25 Minutes watching DVD and taking notes

2 Hours Completing the written exam

Firstly, read the exam paper carefully.  Take notice of what the questions are asking and what information you will need to gather from the text in order to answer them.

Question 1:

You will watch the extract 3 times and during the allocated time will be included 10 minutes for note taking.  This is very valuable time - use it to make as many notes as you can on the text.  Be specific and focused in your note taking – use subheadings (the different codes, different audiences etc) to organize your note-taking.

There is a great deal you can get done in this time – DO NOT waste it!

Once the exam begins you will have 2 hours to answer all questions.

Spend 40 minutes on EACH question.

Question 2:

Question 2 is divided into 3 sections with different marks available for each part.

2a is worth 4 marks.  Spend no more than about 5-6 minutes on this part.  Write a short paragraph.

2b is worth 10 marks.  Spend no more than about 15 minutes on this part.  Aim to write about a page.

2c is worth 16 marks.  Spend about 20 minutes on this part.  Aim to write about 2 pages.

Question 3:

Question 3 is a single essay answer.  It is worth 30 marks and you should spend 40 minutes writing this answer.  Ensure that you plan the essay before you start writing and that you know what examples you are going to use.  It would be advantageous to spend the first five minutes jotting down a very brief plan which you can then use to write the essay.

Make sure that you read the question carefully and respond appropriately – eg. if it asks for two events to be explored make sure you refer to two events.