Page 158 - The Ontario Curriculum, Grades 11 and 12: English, 2007 (Revised)

C. THE MEDIA INDUSTRY OVERALL EXPECTATIONS
By the end of this course, students will:
SPECIFIC EXPECTATIONS
1. Industry and Audience
By the end of this course, students will:
Targeting Audiences and Assessing Responses
1.1 analyse how and why media companies, sponsors, and advertisers identify and target audiences based on socio-economic factors and how they assess and react to audience response (e.g., identify and discuss examples
of television programs that target different demographic groups; explain why certain com- mercials are aired during prime-time dramas featuring teenagers; investigate and explain the rationale behind the product placement of luxury items in certain feature films and television programs; explain why certain corporations are interested in sponsorship arrangements with certain schools; research and compare methods used by different companies to measure television audience ratings; analyse box office reports and music sales charts and suggest how companies may react to the results; research how the responses of test audiences and focus groups have affected decisions about content in movies or advertising campaigns)
Teacher prompts: “How and why do media companies gather information about different groups of consumers? How do companies use demographics [information about age, gender, income, education, and so on] to deter- mine how to advertise to a particular target group or market?” “Why do major movie studios conduct audience screenings prior to the release of their films?”
New Technologies and Content Delivery
1.2 identify some of the ways in which the delivery of content to audiences has changed as a result of new technologies and describe the effects of those changes (e.g., explain how the widespread use of MP3 players has forced record companies to change their distribution methods; explore the effect of increasing numbers of television channels on mainstream television programming; research how the fragmentation of television audiences has changed the nature of shared cultural experiences; research and analyse the ways in which digital television systems allow media consumption to be individualized)
Teacher prompts: “Consider a television program that airs only on a specialty cable channel. What are the advantages and disadvantages for the viewer? For the producer?” “What effect might the fragmentation of media audiences have on shared cultural identity?”
Marketing Across Platforms
1.3 explore how a media product or personality
is marketed to an audience across a range of media platforms (e.g., identify and explain several ways in which animated films are pro- moted through fast food chains; research the media strategies used to give a pop star “brand” identity; explore the ways in which video games and television cartoons are used to promote products and celebrities)
Teacher prompt: “How many ways is this new film being marketed? Which ones do you think are the most effective for its target audience? Why?”
THE MEDIA INDUSTRY
1. Industry and Audience: demonstrate an understanding of the ways in which the creators of media texts target and attract audiences;
2. Ownership and Control: demonstrate an understanding of the impact of regulation, ownership, and control on access, choice, and range of expression.
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Media Studies
EMS3O