MEST3 PPE - Learner Response

You've now completed the full MEST3 PPE - vital preparation for the real thing on Monday 4 June.

The most important aspect of any mock exam is making mistakes and learning from them. You need to closely analyse your performance across each question and identify specific ways you will improve for the MEST3 exam in five weeks. Complete the following learner response tasks in a new blogpost on your MEST3 Exam Blog called 'MEST3 PPE learner response':


1) Type up your feedback in full (you do not need to write mark/grade if you do not wish to).

2) Did you succeed in meeting or exceeding your target grade for A2 Media? If not, how many additional marks do you need across Section A and Section B to achieve your target grade?

Grade boundaries for this exam paper were extremely harsh - but they could easily be this high again and we need to be prepared. Grade boundaries for the complete MEST3 paper (out of 80): 

A* = 75; A = 71; B = 62; C = 53; D = 44; E = 35.

3) Read through the mark scheme. Pay particular attention to pages 6-8 that have suggested content for each of the questions in Section A. How many of these potential points did you make? Did you successfully answer the questions? The original question paper is here if that is helpful.

4) Which was your strongest question in Section A? Why did you do better in that particular question? Note the number of marks each question is worth.


5) Which was your weakest question in Section A? Again, try and identify why this happened. Did you misinterpret the question? Did you run out of time? 

6) Now look at pages 12-13 of the mark scheme for Section B - New/Digital Media paying particular attention to the suggested essay content on page 13. How many of the broad areas suggested by AQA did you cover in your Section B essay? Did you successfully answer the question?

7) Read the Examiner's Report in full. For each question your answered, would you classify your response as one of the stronger answers or one of the weaker answers the Chief Examiner discusses? Why? What could you do differently next time? Write a reflection for EACH question in the paper: Q1, Q2, Q3 and Q6 OR Q7.

8) Choose your weakest question in Section A and re-write an answer in full based on the suggested content from the Examiner's Report. This answer needs to be comprehensive and meet the criteria for Level 4 of the mark scheme. This will be somewhere between 3-5 well-developed paragraphs (depending on the question/number of marks available).

Work on this during the lesson you are given your paper back but you will need to complete for homework.

NDM case study Task 4: Ignite presentation

These are your last lessons on your NDM independent case study - now it's time to prepare a presentation.

This case study will make up at least two crucial paragraphs in your MEST3 Section B essay on New and Digital Media. Make sure you complete the following:

1) Make sure the notes, quotes and statistics in your NDM independent case study blogpost amount to 4,000+ words.  

2) Make sure you have answered every question in the original NDM case study blogpost in full. Note: you can include your answers to these questions in the 4,000 word requirement.

3) Create a 20-slide, five minute Ignite presentation in which you teach the rest of the class about your chosen case study. Fill it with useful information that other students could use in Section A of the MEST3 exam - statistics, the decline of traditional industries, particular texts, artists or institutions etc.

4) Set your presentation to 15-second auto-advance and rehearse the delivery prior to presenting to class in the final double lesson on this topic.

Final deadline for NDM case study and presentation delivery date: Tuesday 8 May

NDM case study Task 3: Up-to-the-minute web research

The third research task for your New/Digital Media independent case study is find recent online articles about your chosen industry and institution/text that give you up-to-the-minute examples, statistics and quotes.

The very nature of new and digital media means the landscape is constantly changing and examiners love seeing examples from the days and weeks leading up to the exam. 

You may want to look back at your index of NDM stories you have been collecting weekly since September - this is when finding great articles all year really pays off. Other good sources are the usual newspaper media/tech pages...

The Guardian: Digital Media 
The Guardian: Technology
The Independent: Media News

...but don't stick exclusively to these. Find your own too - there may be blogs, magazines such as the Economist, industry-specific sites and more. 

We've also been linking stories from our Twitter account all year - @blogmacguffin - so make sure you're following that and look back at what we've posted over the last couple of months too.

The original case study structure and task list is here - use this as a guide for your research but don't be constricted by it. Whatever relevant information you can find is going to be useful. Ultimately, you are working on a blog post similar to your critical investigation Notes and Quotes document - and the quality and depth of this blog post will largely determine your final MEST3 exam grade.

Your next deadline is 2,500 words on your NDM case study blog post by Monday 30 April.

NDM case study Task 2: Media Factsheet research

The second research task for your New/Digital Media independent case study is to use our archive of A Level Media factsheets.

This is a brilliant resource with 160+ A Level-standard factsheets on a huge variety of Media topics. There will almost certainly be a factsheet in the archive on your chosen industry or institution - and there may be several. A few examples include:

050 We Media
067 Lady Gaga and the digital music industry
083 The impact of new media on TV
104 Audiences in the digital age
112 Netflix
113 TV and social media
114 Online privacy: Google
122 The changing face of the music industry
136 The rise of YouTube opinion leaders
143 Politics and persuasion
145 VICE News
149 Ownership and control in the digital age
168 The cultural industries

You'll find the archive on the Media Shared drive:

M:\Resources\A Level\Media Factsheets

Make sure you read the relevant factsheets in full - as well as making notes and highlighting key quotes and statistics.

The original case study structure and task list is here - use this as a guide for your research but don't be constricted by it. Whatever relevant information you can find is going to be useful. Ultimately, you will end up with a blog post similar to your critical investigation Notes and Quotes document - and the quality and depth of this blog post will largely determine your final MEST3 exam grade.

Remember your current deadline: 1,000 words on your NDM case study blog post by Monday 23 April.

NDM case study Task 1: Media Magazine research

The first research task for your New/Digital Media independent case study is to use the Media Magazine archive.

This is an invaluable resource that you have already used for your critical investigations. Now, you need to return to the archive to find any relevant articles on your chosen industry and institution.

Use our Media Magazine archive but particularly the Word document with the contents page for each issue to search for relevant articles. Bear in mind there have been some particularly good features in recent issues released since you did your critical investigation research. Make sure you read the articles in full - as well as making notes and highlighting key quotes and statistics.

The original case study structure and task list is here - use this as a guide for your research but don't be constricted by it. Whatever relevant information you can find is going to be useful. Ultimately, you will end up with a blog post similar to your critical investigation Notes and Quotes document - and the quality and depth of this blog post will largely determine your final MEST3 exam grade.

If you're wondering what this Media Magazine research might look like, here's a great example from a previous year. Remember, Rabia went on to achieve an A* in Media so this is the level we're aiming for!

Note: you need to have your industry and text/institution approved by your exam teacher before you begin this research. Make sure you've done this before getting into your research.

Your initial deadline is 1,000 words on your NDM case study blog post by Monday 23 April.