Page 67 - The Ontario Curriculum, Grades 9 and 10: English, 2007 (Revised)

Grade 9, Applied
1. Understanding Media Texts: demonstrate an understanding of a variety of media texts;
2. Understanding Media Forms, Conventions, and Techniques: identify some media forms and explain
how the conventions and techniques associated with them are used to create meaning;
3. Creating Media Texts: create a variety of media texts for different purposes and audiences, using appropriate forms, conventions, and techniques;
4. Reflecting on Skills and Strategies: reflect on and identify their strengths as media interpreters and creators, areas for improvement, and the strategies they found most helpful in understanding and creating media texts.
1. Understanding Media Texts
THE ONTARIO CURRICULUM, GRADES 9 AND 10 | English
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SPECIFIC EXPECTATIONS
By the end of this course, students will:
Purpose and Audience
1.1 explain how simple media texts and some teacher-selected complex media texts are creat- ed to suit particular purposes and audiences (e.g., advertisements for games and toys use bright colours and happy images to appeal to children; horror movies use unusual camera angles, menacing music, and special effects to create a spooky atmosphere; a teen magazine uses teen insider jargon and an offbeat layout to appeal to its readers’ desire to establish their own identity1)
Teacher prompt: “Why do fashion magazines contain many photographs and relatively little text?”
Interpreting Messages
1.2 interpret simple media texts and some teacher- selected complex media texts, identifying some of the overt and implied messages they
convey (e.g., emotive language used in a news- paper headline signals a dramatic event; images of happy families in television advertising for fast-food restaurants link the product to ideas
of family harmony and togetherness)
Teacher prompts: “What do the words in this movie poster tell us about the movie? What else is communicated about the movie
through the design, colours, and images in the poster?” “How does the music in this song support the message of its lyrics?”
Evaluating Texts
1.3 evaluate how effectively information and ideas are communicated in simple media texts and some teacher-selected complex media texts, and decide whether the texts achieve their intended purpose (e.g., explain why one advertisement is more likely than another to persuade them to buy a product;2 determine whether the images chosen to advertise a product clearly communi- cate something important or appealing about
the product)
Teacher prompt: “Why is a dog an effective symbol to communicate a message about the reliability of a product?”
Audience Responses
1.4 identify how different audiences might respond to selected media texts (e.g., predict how young, single males might respond to a car ad for a family van;3 predict how different peer groups might respond to a new rap CD)
Teacher prompt: “How might readers of dif- ferent ages respond to images in magazines of perfect bodies and luxurious lifestyles?”
MEDIA STUDIES
OVERALL EXPECTATIONS
By the end of this course, students will:
1. TL Media 7-10 “Exploring the Key Concepts of Media Literacy” 2
2. TL Media 7-10 “Evaluating the Effectiveness of Media Messages” 28 3. TL Media 7-10 “Examining Multiple Perspectives of an Advertisement” 22