Evaluation questions - with main points highlighted.

In what ways does your media product use, develop or challenge forms and conventions of real media products?

This asks you to compare your piece with real documentaries. You should explain the ways in which you have followed the common codes and conventions of TV documentaries, referring to specific documentaries that you have seen and citing the specific areas in your piece where these conventions have been followed, and why you have chosen to follow them. (Use stills and clips from other pieces to support this where possible). You should explain why you have done this and how pleased you are (or not) with what you have done. If you feel that you have developed or challenged the codes and conventions in any way then you need to explain how and why you have done this, again with supporting evidence.

How effective is the combination of your main product and ancillary texts?

Here you need to look at how effectively your 3 texts combine. You need to consider how issues such as how effectively they all target the same audience and to what extent you feel that you have created a clear ‘brand identity’ for your 3 texts. You also need to consider how effectively you feel your radio trailer and your magazine article promote your documentary. Be honest and reflective here. Again, use examples from your texts to support the points that you make here.

What have you learned from your audience feedback?

After completing your documentary you should have carried out detailed audience feedback. You need to summarise the main findings of this and comment on yourresponse to the feedback you have received. Did your audience respond in the way you expected them to or were you surprised in any way by their responses?

How did you use media technologies in the construction and research, planning and evaluation stages?

Here you need to reflect on the production process. You need to describe all of the different technologies you used throughout the process (including the blogs and the evaluations), giving precise details about the software and hardware that you used and how useful you found them to be. Make sure that you show the examiner the extent of your technical knowledge and that you are capable of reflecting honestly on how effectively you used the technology that was available to you.

Make sure that the points you make are supported by things such as stills, graphs and links. Remember that two of the grading criteria for level 4 are:

• There is excellent skill in choice of form in which to present the evaluation
• There is excellent use of digital technology or ICT in the evaluate
• The ‘style’ as well as the content of your blog will be assessed.