Blog feedback and learner response

 WWW: You have posted all the blog work required so far and I really like a lot of your responses – clear ambitions in terms of potential next steps (aiming for a degree apprenticeship is a great shout) and some interesting reflection in terms of your media consumption. I totally agree that AI is a massive media story for 2024 but I also think AI is a significant factor in some of your blog work so far and that concerns me…

 

EBI: … Some of your answers simply don’t fit the questions which suggests you are cutting corners, not checking your work AND that AI isn’t quite sophisticated enough to mimic a genuine hardworking A Level Media student yet. For example, the analysis of the English short film in the Semiotics task just doesn’t fit with the text – what is the weight of unresolved tension? Similarly, your analysis of the RBK 50 Cent advert is clearly not your own work – there is no text stating ‘Get in the game’ on the advert I asked you to analyse. Ultimately, if you rely on AI to cut corners in your blog work you will find that your exam and assessment performance consistently underperforms expectation and that will be a problem going forward.

 

LR: Complete all your own work with no use of AI, ChatGPT or equivalent. Go back to those pieces of work and complete them properly.

Reflect on your work in A Level Media so far. 

What is your strongest piece of work? 

I believe that genre blog task is my greatest strength. It offers a detailed analysis and covers various aspects of media, making it a vital component in media studies. By exploring different genres, I can dissect their conventions, themes, and cultural significance, providing valuable insights into how they shape audience perceptions and influence trends. 

 

What is your weakest? 

I think reading an image is one of my weaker skills. It involves a lot of different aspects, like understanding the various codes and how they come together to convey meaning. Analysing an image requires us to search into its visual language and context, which can feel pretty complex. Sometimes, I struggle to fully articulate the layers of meaning behind an image, especially when it comes to the cultural references or emotions it evokes.

What specific skills or knowledge do you need to develop over the rest of the course?

I’d like to get better at analysing images. Understanding composition, colour, and symbolism will help me grasp what they communicate. Learning about different media theories will give me context for my analyses and help me see how media influences society. I want to strengthen my ability to gather and evaluate sources.