Deadline extension

After looking at your blogs over the weekend, we have decided to extend the deadline for your AS Foundation Production until midnight on Sunday 24th February.

This is the absolute final deadline and no work must be added to your blogs after this time.

Please use the extra time wisely and ensure you have completed all of the work outlined in the progress checklist. S13 is available for all of your study periods on Enhancement Day and during half term. Please email me if you plan to come into school during half term so that I can make arrangements with the Premises team regarding Health and Safety.

Are you on track to meet the final deadline?

Remember, the final deadline is 8th February.

I am very concerned that some of you have still not, for example:

• Uploaded photos from your photo shoots (not just the one photo you have selected for your cover) - remember, more than one photo shoot is needed to achieve Level 4. You must include more than one artist and an appropriate variety of mise en scene.
• Uploaded details of any planning/layouts/drafts for your front cover, contents page or double page spread.
• Made any reference to your contents page or DPS anywhere on your blog - these are essential parts of your magazine and are assessed in the same way as the front cover.

Please make it your priority to get up to date with your coursework as a matter of urgency. In order to submit a Level 4 Evaluation (worth 20% of your coursework mark), you need to allow yourself a week to put this together.  More details to follow on the Evaluation this week.

Remember, marks are awarded (and deducted) according to your time management skills in your mark for 'Research and Planning' (another 20% of your coursework mark).

Research and planning: Progress check

Remember, you should be keeping a close eye on the production schedule for your magazine, which can be found here.

Many of you are falling behind and you are not making use of the resources on this blog. In order to move forward with the planning phase you should have done the following and posted your findings on your blog:

• Researched the music magazine industry 
• Researched examples of music magazines - their brand identities, audiences and content analysis
• Identified the genre for your own magazine - explaining how you have reached your decisions (not just because you like it!)
• Researched the conventions of this genre and the personae of typical artists from this genre (mood boards would be useful for this - check out the examples on the blog)
• Researched the conventions of magazine design for your chosen genre - including detailed textual analyses of front covers, contents pages and double page spreads, which you link back to the magazines' respective brands and target audiences.
• Taken this research to your audience and get their feedback on what they want from a music magazine

As we stressed when you produced your school magazine, it's essential that you reflect on  your findings and identify how they will influence your decisions about your own magazine.

Then, you are ready to start planning the following and explaining reasons for your decisions, based on your research findings.

The magazine in general:

• Your magazine's 'brand identity' and mode of address - You should explain how you will lay out your magazine in a way that reflects the brand identity. Use the example we did together, analysing Q magazine to help you.
• A flat plan for your magazine showing the contents
• Your magazine's title and masthead
• Your choice of register, colours, fonts etc. to form a style guide for your magazine

The artists you will photograph for your magazine:

• Your choices of models
• The 'star images' or 'personae' you are going to construct
• Costume, hair and make-up
• Gesture codes and modes of address
• Camera shots and angles and lighting you will use
• Locations, props, colours you will associate with these artists

Your front cover, DPS and contents page:

• What you will include and how they will be laid out (hand-drawn drafts are fine for this at first - you can scan these in and upload them on to your blog, accompanied by either a written or audio commentary)

Please email your new blog addresses URGENTLY

If you have not already created your blog and submitted your address, you are behind schedule, and your progress is deemed as 'Red'.

Please read this post carefully: http://beaverwoodmediaas.blogspot.co.uk/2012/10/new-blog-address-for-music-magazines.html


I have only received links to music magazine blogs from these students.

A reminder that the deadline for these blogs to be set up was Thursday 25th October - over a week ago. By now, your research should be well under-way, but without access to your blogs, we are unable to monitor your progress and give you the feedback you need. Please email the link to beaverwoodmedia@gmail.com urgently.

Please ensure that you are checking the AS media blog hub regularly to make use of the resources that are posted for you and to ensure that you are on top of all coursework deadlines - remember your time management skills are formally assessed in this unit!

I will be contacting parents of all those students whose blogs are still judged as 'Red' by the end of the week.

Good luck and if you have any queries, please don't hesitate to contact me. 121MS - please use our lessons on Monday 5th and Tuesday 6th to continue with your research.

New blog address for music magazines - Deadline this Thursday

- Click on the Blogger icon in the top left section of your blog to go to your dashboard.
- Click on 'New Blog'
- Call your new blog something like 'Name's AS Music Magazine Coursework' and choose an appropriate blog address
- Please email your new address to beaverwoodmedia@gmail.com
- Your first post should be entitled: 'Link to School Magazine Blog' and you should copy and paste a hyperlink to your school magazine blog (even if this blog is still in progress)

AS coursework: Blog progress check

AS coursework: Your schedule

Monitor your progress against these deadlines – and if you see yourself falling behind, CATCH UP! Record key dates in your diary and work out when and how you will use your independent study periods and homework.

During the course, you’ll be able to see what your teachers think of your blogs here.

Red = We are concerned you are falling behind. If you do not catch up and improve/add to your blog, you are in danger of failing the course.

Amber = You are making satisfactory progress, but there is more to be done to secure yourself the grade you are capable of.

Green = You are on top of your coursework, and are making good progress. Keep up the good work and refer to the comments we have posted on your blog to help develop your coursework even further.

By 5^th October

Research into existing media

What are the conventions of a magazine front cover?

What is a school magazine? What are their different purposes and audiences?

Analysis of 2-3 different existing school magazines

Research into target audience

Who is your target audience? (Particular age group/niche if applicable)

Audience questionnaire/interview/focus group etc. – What they want from a school magazine

Results and evaluation of research

Collate your findings and present appropriately

What have you learnt from your research and how will this influence the decisions you make about your school magazine? 

Planning and drafting

Based on your research, develop a clear idea of your brand and your target audience: How will you communicate? How will they be positioned? How will both be represented?

Identify which conventions you will follow and why

Which locations, costumes, props and actors have you considered? Which ones will you use and why?

Mock up layouts and from these, draw up a shooting schedule (include shot list, location, props etc.), ensuring you have permission to take photographs in these locations

By 19^th October

Production

Ensure you keep track of photos taken (and selected), problems encountered, decisions made (and altered) etc. and upload evidence. This will form an ongoing 'Behind the Scenes' commentary on your production work (and pick you up LOADS of marks for your evaluation if you do it well!)

What technology/equipment have you used? What have you learnt?

Upload final layouts and explain the denotations/connotations, with reference to magazine conventions

By 2^nd November– MAIN TASK (MUSIC MAGAZINE)

Research into existing media

What is a music magazine? What different types exist? Who publishes them? For whom? What are their different purposes and audiences?

Analysis of 3 different existing music magazines

Research into your chosen genre

Which genre(s) have you chosen and why?

What seem to be the conventions of this genre? Who is the target audience?

Who are the main publishers for magazines of this genre? Are there particular conventions that are specific to these types of magazines?

Choose three artists associated with this genre and analyse how each one’s ‘star image’ has been created. How are they represented and how does the target audience relate to them?

Research into target audience

Who is your target audience? (Particular age group/gender percentages/geographical/brands they buy/where they shop/interests/values/etc.)

Audience questionnaire/interview/focus group etc. – What they want from a music magazine

By 16^th November

Results and evaluation of research

Collate your findings and present appropriately

What have you learnt from your research and how will this influence the decisions you make about your music magazine?

Planning and drafting
Based on your research, develop a clear idea of your brand and your target audience: How will you communicate? How will they be positioned? How will both be represented?

Identify which conventions you will follow and why

Which locations and actors have you considered? Which ones will you use and why?

Mock up layouts and from these, draw up a shooting schedule (include shot list, location, props etc.), ensuring you have permission to take photographs in these location

By 30^th November

Production

Ensure you keep track of photos taken (and selected), problems encountered, decisions made (and altered) etc. and upload evidence ensuring you record evidence (again - an ongoing ‘Behind the Scenes’ commentary - see point above!)

What technology/equipment have you used? What have you learnt?

By 14^th December

Production continued

Ensure you keep track of photos taken (and selected), problems encountered, decisions made (and altered) etc. and upload evidence ensuring you record video evidence (an ongoing‘Behind the Scenes’ commentary)

What technology/equipment have you used? What have you learnt?

By 11^th January

Production continued

· Ensure you keep track of photos taken (and selected), problems encountered, decisions made (and altered) etc. and upload evidence ensuring you record video evidence (an ongoing ‘Behind the Scenes’ commentary)

· What technology/equipment have you used? What have you learnt?

Upload layouts and explain the decisions you've made and denotations/connotations, with reference to magazine conventions

By 25^th January

Production continued

What has your audience said about your finished magazine?

How does it compare to other music magazines on the market?

What have you changed as a result of this? What effect has this had on your finished magazine? Upload any amended layouts and accompanying analysis.

By 8^th February

Evaluation

Multimedia evaluation uploaded to include at least three of the following: text, images (screen grabs etc.), hyperlinks to research, video footage, voice-over.