IGCSE Media Studies Topics by Exam Board: Full List

When you’re studying an average of 8-10 IGCSEs, revising for each subject can feel overwhelming. It’s even harder when you don’t know exactly which topics you’ll be tested on.

Overly long specifications full of technical jargon can get in the way of revision planning. What you really need is a clear picture of how each theme, topic or area fits into the assessment structure.

This article includes an official and complete breakdown of the topics you need to revise for IGCSE Media Studies (opens in a new tab). We’ve summarised the subject content from the only exam board currently offering this qualification – OxfordAQA – to show you exactly what you need to know. We’ll also explain how to use these lists to revise in the most effective way.

Key Takeaways

• OxfordAQA is the only exam board currently offering IGCSE Media Studies 

• Avoid revising unnecessary content by only looking at the OxfordAQA specification

• Use topic and theme lists to create a revision plan and organise your notes

Why It's Important to Know Your Exam Board

Although subject content often overlaps across exam boards, each exam board has a different syllabus. This means that the same subject can be taught very differently in one exam board compared to another, with varying topics, skills and assessment methods.

Knowing exactly which topics your exam board covers means you can create a focused revision plan. You won't waste time studying content that won't be tested, and you'll know exactly what to expect when it comes to exams.

Only OxfordAQA currently offers IGCSE Media Studies, so if you’re studying this qualification, OxfordAQA is your exam board. Fortunately, this makes it much easier to work out what you need to revise!

OxfordAQA IGCSE Media Studies Topics (9257)

The list below features the kind of content you can expect to learn in the four areas of OxfordAQA IGCSE Media Studies:

Area 1. Media Language

• Media forms and meanings

  • The creation and communication of media messages in different forms, e.g. television, radio or film

• Codes, conventions and genres

  • How the choice of elements in a media product can work to create stories and put over points of view, e.g. types of video shot and CGI

• Narrative

  • Story structures and features, e.g. exposition, complication, resolution

• Media contexts

  • Cultural, economic, historical and technological, e.g. implications of artificial intelligence (AI) for media production

Area 2. Media Representation

• Representations of reality

  • How particular social groups, including celebrities, are represented, underrepresented or misrepresented

• Stereotypes

  • How they become established and how they enable audiences to interpret media quickly, e.g. with stock characters

• Representations in the news

  • How social media and different news outlets impact news representations, e.g. fake news and misinformation

• Audiences and representations

  • How individuals and groups represent themselves to communicate ideas about their identity, e.g. age, class, gender and ethnicity

• Media contexts

  • Cultural, economic, historical and technological, e.g. how ‘culture wars’ are often fought over the ways in which groups, issues or events are represented in the media

Area 3. Media Industries

• Ownership and media production

  • Structures and patterns, e.g. conglomerate or public ownership

• Convergence

  • Cross-media ownership, e.g. through mergers and takeovers

• Globalisation

  • Multinational media production and cultural imperialism, e.g. international agreements and disagreements on regulation and freedom to trade media products

• Funding and regulation

  • State-funded, not-for-profit and commercial models, e.g. advertising, sponsorship and product placement

• Media contexts

  • Cultural, economic, historical and technological, e.g. advantages and disadvantages of a global media culture

Area 4. Media Audiences

• The nature and significance of the audience

  • Strategies to create and continue to satisfy audiences, e.g. trailers and teasers

• Defining and categorising media audiences

  • Audience segmentation and types of media consumption, e.g. social or private

• Targeting

  • Marketing and product design, e.g., guerrilla and viral marketing

• Theoretical perspectives on the audience

  • The needs of the audience, e.g. entertainment and education

• Audience practices

  • Audiences as both active producers and consumers, e.g. vloggers and fans

• Media contexts

  • Cultural, economic, historical and technological, e.g. how audience needs and expectations have changed over the years

The table below shows what each OxfordAQA IGCSE Media Studies exam paper:

It’s worth noting that Paper 1 also requires you to study a selected episode from a television series. This is currently ‘Kerblam!’, which is Episode 7, Series 11 of Doctor Who.

Both Paper 1 and the NEA also require you to draw on your studies of your Selected Media Products (SMPs). If you’re not sure which SMPs you’re studying, check with your teacher.

How to Use Topic Lists for Revision

Create a revision plan

Print or copy out the themes or paper content into a checklist. Use the traffic light system (opens in a new tab) to prioritise weaker areas, and tick each area off as you revise. Seeing progress is really motivating, and it stops you from accidentally skipping anything important.

Organise your notes and flashcards by topic

Separating your notes and flashcards according to topic will make it much easier to find information quickly.

Frequently Asked Questions

Do I need to revise all IGCSE Media Studies topics for the exam?

Yes. OxfordAQA tests your understanding of all four areas, with Paper 1 focusing on the theory and the NEA on the practice.

Use a checklist to make your revision more manageable.

Are these topics the same across all exam boards?

OxfordAQA is the only exam board currently offering IGCSE Media Studies.

If and when new exam boards start to offer this qualification, the content is likely to overlap, but it will still be distinct.

How do I know which topics I struggle with most?

Once you’ve used the traffic light system, look at which topics you tend to get the lowest marks on in mock exams or past paper questions (opens in a new tab). Prioritise revising the areas where you’re least confident.

Do all topics come up in every exam paper?

Yes. Paper 1 OxfordAQA tests your knowledge and understanding of all four areas, and the NEA tests your ability to apply that knowledge and understanding to create a media product.

Final Thoughts

Using theme and topic lists to structure your IGCSE Media Studies revision means you'll know exactly what to study, how it's tested, and how to allocate your time between each area.

Bookmark or print this page, and use it as your roadmap. Work through each theme or area, tick it off as you go, practise answering past paper questions, and persevere to improve your knowledge and skills for all four exam papers.

References

• How to Use the Traffic Light System to Improve Your Marks (opens in a new tab)

• OxfordAQA: International GCSE Media Studies (opens in a new tab)

• OxfordAQA: International GCSE Media Studies: Assessment Resources (opens in a new tab)

• OxfordAQA: Non-Exam Assessment (opens in a new tab)