December mock exams: revision and preparation

Your December mock exams are another opportunity to practice exam skills and revise the CSPs we have studied so far. 

Your December exams will be two mini-versions of the real exams you'll do in the summer. Below is a full guide to what you need to revise for each section of the exam.   

Know your exams

One of the most important aspects of preparing for examinations is knowing exactly what topics could come up in each exam. For your December exams, this is what might come up:

Paper 1 - Thursday 8 December

Paper 1 Section A: Language and Representation

• Unseen text: advert, social media screengrab or music promotion of some kind. Multiple choice questions plus media language analysis. 
• Advertising & Marketing: OMO advert, Galaxy Audrey Hepburn advert and the NHS Represent blood donation campaign. 
• Magazines: Tatler and Heat.

Paper 1 Section B: Audience and Industry

• Media Industries questions - media terminology / theory / regulation.
• Film: Black Widow and I, Daniel Blake.
• Radio: Launch of BBC Radio 1 - Tony Blackburn show (1967) and the KISS Breakfast show. 
• Music Video: BLACKPINK - How You Like That and Arctic Monkeys - I Bet You Look Good On The Dancefloor

Paper 2 - Thursday 15 December

Paper 2 will be Section A only - Television.

Section A: Television

• Short extract from either Doctor Who – An Unearthly Child (1963) or His Dark Materials – The City of Magpies (2020).
• The extract will be shown twice and you can make notes. There will then be three questions on the extract (2 marks, 8 marks, 12 marks).
• The final question is a 20-mark essay on BOTH of your TV Close-Study Products.
• The TV index with links to all original blogposts is here.

Your real Paper 2 will also have a Section B with two 20-mark essays on either Newspapers or Videogames and Online, Social and Participatory Media. However, these will not appear in your December mock exam as we have not studied them yet.

How to revise

Revision is a very personal thing and everyone has different techniques. Personally, I strongly recommend using flash cards (they are often called record cards if you are trying to buy them online or in WHSmiths). The simple act of distilling topics into a few key words or phrases to put on the card will seriously help in remembering the key information in the final exams. I have spare flash cards in DF07 if you'd like some.  

Good luck with your revision and give these exams your best shot!

Due date on Google Classroom