AQA A-Level Media Studies Active Recall Guide (7572)
AQA · A-Level
AQA A-Level Media Studies Active Recall Guide
A question-and-answer revision guide for AQA A-Level Media Studies, built to be worked in three passes rather than read.
- AQA
- A-Level
- Specification 7572
- 7 topics
The 3-step active recall method
Re-reading notes is a futile process when your aim is to remember the information and successfully apply it in exam settings. Active recall is the method you use to ensure the information sticks for a long period of time.
But even active recall can be futile unless you have a structured way of implementing it. This is where the 3-step active recall method comes in, a structured method that is signature to the Levo Learning guides.
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Step 1
Answer up to 10 questions cold, closed book, even if you are unsure on the topic.
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Step 2
Answer the same questions again, but open book. Write the correct answer down even if it seems pointless.
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Step 3
Repeat as step 1 and answer the questions closed book again.
Worked across the AQA A-Level Media Studies specification, one subtopic at a time.
The subject, and what is assessed
AQA A-Level Media Studies (specification 7572) is assessed by two written papers taken at the end of the two-year course and one non-exam assessment.
Media One and Media Two each last 2 hours and carry 84 marks, worth 35% each; the cross-media production carries 60 marks and is worth 30%.
Both written papers examine the whole theoretical framework of media language, representation, industries and audiences, what separates them is the media forms that framework is applied to.
Media One tests advertising and marketing, music video, radio, newspapers and film; Media Two tests television, magazines, online, social and participatory media, and video games. Products must be analysed in relation to five contexts: social, cultural, economic, political and historical.
The close study products the board sets are revised annually, so this guide covers the framework, the contexts and the forms rather than any particular product.
| Paper | Covers | Length | Marks | Weighting |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Paper 1 | Media one | 2 hours | 84 marks | 35% |
| Paper 2 | Media two | 2 hours | 84 marks | 35% |
| Non-exam assessment | Creating a cross-media production | 60 marks | 30% |
Memorisation, then application
Marks are given for applying content to the question that has been set, which cannot happen while the content is still being looked up. Step 1 shows what is actually held.
Step 2 puts the correct wording in front of you while the gap is still fresh. Step 3 repeats the cold test, and the difference between the first and third attempt is the part that has moved.
Every question in the guide is paired with its answer in the same document, so step 2 is done from the guide itself rather than from a separate set of notes.
What is inside the guide
Questions are grouped by topic and then by subtopic, following the AQA specification. Open a topic to see its subtopics.
Media Language14 subtopics
Media language is examined on both Media One and Media Two. It covers how media products construct meaning through codes and conventions, and the enabling theories that give that analysis its vocabulary: semiotics, narratology, Neale on genre, structuralism and postmodernism.
- Codes and conventions15
- Constructing meaning through media language13
- Genre, hybridity and intertextuality15
- Viewpoints, ideology and audience interpretation12
- Semiotics: signs and their types13
- Semiotics: paradigm, syntagm and anchorage12
- Barthes: denotation, connotation and myth12
- Narratology: narrative codes and diegesis13
- Todorov: equilibrium, disruption and new equilibrium12
- Genre theory as summarised by Neale15
- Structuralism: binary oppositions and mythemes13
- Structuralism: ideological reading and deconstruction12
- Postmodernism: pastiche, bricolage and implosion12
- Baudrillard: simulacra, simulation and hyperreality12
Media Representation17 subtopics
Media representation is examined on both Media One and Media Two.
It covers how events, issues, individuals and social groups are constructed through selection and combination, and the theories used to analyse that: Hall, Gauntlett, the feminist positions, Butler on performativity, and postcolonial theory.
- Constructing representations13
- Why producers make the representational choices they do12
- Social and cultural context in representation12
- Stereotypes: positive and negative use12
- Under-representation and misrepresentation12
- Representation, realism and the values it carries12
- Industry contexts and representational choice12
- Discourse, ideology and audience positioning12
- Theories of representation: stereotypes and countertypes12
- Theories of representation: misrepresentation and selective representation12
- Theories of representation: ideology, hegemony and constructed reality12
- Hall on representation: encoding and decoding12
- Theories of identity as summarised by Gauntlett15
- Feminist theories: the male gaze and patriarchy14
- Feminist theories: van Zoonen and hooks13
- Theories of gender performativity13
- Theories around ethnicity and postcolonial theory16
Media Industries15 subtopics
Media industries is examined on both Media One and Media Two.
It covers production, distribution and circulation, patterns of ownership, funding and the UK regulatory framework, together with Curran and Seaton on power, Livingstone and Lunt on regulation, and Hesmondhalgh on the cultural industries.
- Production, distribution and circulation12
- Ownership and control12
- Economics and funding of media industries12
- Marketing and maintaining audiences12
- Regulation of media in the UK13
- Digital convergence and the individual producer12
- Regulation in global production and circulation12
- Curran and Seaton: regulation, deregulation and the free market12
- Curran and Seaton: concentration, conglomerates and public service broadcasting12
- Curran and Seaton: neo-liberalism, surveillance and privacy12
- Curran and Seaton: the central argument12
- Livingstone and Lunt: the public sphere and governance12
- Livingstone and Lunt: media literacy12
- Livingstone and Lunt: power, value and globalisation12
- Cultural industries as summarised by Hesmondhalgh20
Media Audiences16 subtopics
Media audiences is examined on both Media One and Media Two.
It covers how audiences are grouped, targeted and reached, how technology has changed consumption, and the enabling theories: media effects, Bandura, Gerbner on cultivation, reception theory, fandom and the 'end of audience' argument.
- Grouping and categorising audiences12
- Targeting, attracting, reaching and addressing audiences12
- Media technologies and patterns of consumption12
- Mass and specialised audiences12
- Niche and fan audiences12
- Audience interpretation and its circumstances12
- Media effects: uses and gratifications12
- Media effects: hypodermic needle and moral panic12
- Media effects: media literacy12
- Bandura: social learning and imitation12
- Cultivation theory: socialisation and the bardic function12
- Gerbner: cultivation differential, mainstreaming and resonance12
- Reception theory: agenda setting, framing and myth making12
- Hall on reception: the three reading positions14
- Fandom13
- 'End of audience' theories20
Contexts of the Media6 subtopics
Contexts of the media runs through both written papers.
The specification requires products to be analysed in relation to five contexts, social, cultural, economic, political and historical, and not every question names them, so all five have to be available to draw on.
- Social context13
- Cultural context13
- Economic context13
- Political context13
- Historical context13
- Analysing media products in context13
Media Forms and Products9 subtopics
The nine media forms divide between the two papers. Advertising and marketing, music video, radio, newspapers and film sit on Media One; television, magazines, online, social and participatory media and video games sit on Media Two.
Film is studied for its industry only.
- Advertising and marketing13
- Music video13
- Radio13
- Newspapers13
- Film as an industry13
- Television13
- Magazines13
- Online, social and participatory media13
- Video games13
The Cross-Media Production and Assessment6 subtopics
The cross-media production is the non-exam assessment, worth 60 marks and 30% of the A-level. This topic also covers how close study products are used, and what the written papers expect from an extended, synoptic response.
- Close study products and how they are used12
- The NEA brief and its requirements13
- The Statement of Intent12
- Applying the theoretical framework in production13
- Producing across platforms for a specified audience12
- Extended response and synopticity12
Sample questions
Taken from the AQA A-Level Media Studies guide. Answer each one closed book first, then open the answer.
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Media Language
What are the four main types of codes that media forms use to communicate meaning?
Show the answer
Visual codes, audio codes, written codes, and technical codes. -
Media Representation
What is the process of selection in media representation?
Show the answer
Selection is the process by which media producers choose which elements to include in a media text from all available options. -
Media Industries
What does media production involve in terms of who creates content?
Show the answer
Media production involves the creation of content by organisations, groups and individuals. -
Media Audiences
How do media industries use gender as a demographic factor when categorising audiences?
Show the answer
They group audiences according to whether they identify as male, female or other genders, allowing content to be tailored to gender-specific interests or experiences. -
Contexts of the Media
What does social context mean in the analysis of a media product?
Show the answer
The condition of the society in which a product was made and received, including its structures of class, gender, ethnicity, age and family, and the attitudes prevailing at the time. -
Media Forms and Products
What is the primary purpose of an advertisement as a media product?
Show the answer
To persuade a defined audience towards a product, service, brand or idea, usually within very limited time or space. -
The Cross-Media Production and Assessment
Why does the specification state that the focus of study is not the products themselves?
Show the answer
Because the products are the material through which the theoretical framework is learned, so what is being assessed is the ability to apply that framework rather than knowledge of particular texts. -
Media Language
Why is the selection of media language elements important in shaping meaning?
Show the answer
Selection determines which elements are included or excluded, directly influencing what meanings are available to audiences.
Questions about this guide
How do you use active recall for AQA A-Level Media Studies?
Answer up to 10 questions cold and closed book. Answer the same questions again open book, writing the correct answer down.
Then answer them closed book one more time. The difference between the first and third attempt is what has moved into recall.
How is AQA A-Level Media Studies assessed?
AQA A-Level Media Studies is assessed by 3 components: Paper 1, media one (2 hours, 84 marks, 35%); Paper 2, media two (2 hours, 84 marks, 35%); Non-exam assessment, creating a cross-media production (60 marks, 30%).
What topics does the AQA A-Level Media Studies active recall guide cover?
It covers Media Language, Media Representation, Media Industries, Media Audiences, Contexts of the Media, Media Forms and Products and The Cross-Media Production and Assessment.
Is the AQA A-Level Media Studies guide a PDF?
Yes. It is a digital PDF sent to the email address on your order after purchase.
Check the address is correct at checkout, and check junk or spam if it has not arrived.
Does the guide include the answers?
Yes. Every question has its answer in the same document, grouped by topic, so step 2 of the method is done from the guide.
AQA A-Level Media Studies Active Recall Guide
Every question paired with its answer, grouped by topic, ready to work in three passes.