Page 96 - The Ontario Curriculum, Grades 9 and 10: English, 2007 (Revised)

MEDIA STUDIES
OVERALL EXPECTATIONS
By the end of this course, students will:
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.
SPECIFIC EXPECTATIONS
1. Understanding Media Texts
By the end of this course, students will:
Purpose and Audience
1.1 explain how both simple and complex media texts are created to suit particular purposes and audiences (e.g., a public service announcement on television may combine informational text,
a voice-over narrative, and serious background music to convey a message of social concern; country-and-western music videos use outdoor settings and characters dressed in western gear to reinforce their themes; martial arts films use quick cuts and special effects to emphasize the speed and athleticism of the action and to satisfy their target audience’s expectations1)
Teacher prompt: “Why do soft-drink ads on television often feature young people engaged in energetic activities?”
Interpreting Messages
1.2 interpret simple and complex media texts, identifying and explaining the overt and implied messages they convey (e.g., a cell phone commercial implies a connection between owning the phone and social success; an action- adventure film implies a connection between athleticism/physical stamina and heroism)
Teacher prompt: “What assumptions might visitors from Mars make about humans based on a viewing of North American prime-time TV shows?”
Evaluating Texts
1.3 evaluate how effectively information, ideas, issues, and opinions are communicated in both simple and complex media texts and decide whether the texts achieve their intended pur- pose (e.g., determine which of two competing firms’ advertisements for a similar product is more per- suasive, and explain why;2 assess the importance of a catchy jingle or a memorable mascot to the success of a television commercial)
Teacher prompt: “Have you ever seen a
TV commercial where the sound was more important than the picture for communicating key ideas about a product? Was it effective? Why or why not?”
Audience Responses
1.4 identify and explain different audience responses to selected media texts (e.g., parents’ versus teens’ reactions to a running-shoe ad featuring a sports star;3 male versus female responses to a historical“costume drama”movie)
Teacher prompt: “How might people from different cultural backgrounds respond to a TV documentary about Canadian history?”
MEDIA STUDIES
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
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