📚 Year 10 AQA Media: 2026 Exam Changes and Trends | AQA媒体研究10年级：2026年考试变化与趋势
If you are in Year 10 starting your AQA GCSE Media Studies course in September 2025, you will be the first cohort to face the brand-new specification, with your final exams scheduled for summer 2027. While 2026 may not be your examination year, it is the critical period when the shape of your assessments becomes crystal clear—through mock exams, coursework briefs, and the finalised sample papers. Understanding the changes and trends now gives you a powerful head start. This article walks you through everything you need to know about the updated AQA Media Studies GCSE, from closed-book unseen analysis to the refreshed Close Study Products and NEA expectations.
如果你是 2025 年 9 月开始学习 AQA GCSE 媒体研究课程的 10 年级学生，你将是首批应对全新考试大纲的学生，最终考试将在 2027 年夏季举行。虽然 2026 年并不是你的考试年，但这一年至关重要——通过模拟考试、课程作业简报以及最终确定的样卷，考试的全貌将变得清晰。现在了解这些变化和趋势，能让你抢占先机。本文将带你全面解读更新后的 AQA 媒体研究 GCSE，从闭卷未知文本分析到全新的近观产品（CSP）和非考试评估要求。
1. New Specification Overview | 新课程概览
The AQA GCSE Media Studies (8572) specification has been completely refreshed for first teaching in September 2025, replacing the previous 2017 version. The qualification remains linear, meaning all exams and the NEA are taken at the end of Year 11, but the content, assessment structure and underlying philosophy have evolved to reflect the rapidly changing media landscape. This renewal places a heavier emphasis on digital convergence, participatory culture and the active role of audiences as producers of meaning.
AQA GCSE 媒体研究（8572）课程大纲已全面更新，将于 2025 年 9 月首次教学，取代了 2017 版。资格证书仍为线性结构，即所有考试和非考试评估都在 11 年级末进行，但内容、评估结构和核心理念均已进化，以反映快速变化的媒体环境。这次更新更加强调数字融合、参与式文化以及受众作为意义生产者的积极角色。
The new specification retains the two-exam format but rebalances the distribution of topics. Teachers and students will notice that memorisation of a static set of facts is less rewarded; instead, the ability to apply theoretical knowledge to unseen media texts and contemporary examples is at the heart of top-grade performance. The NEA briefs are now released annually, offering fresh creative challenges tied to current industry contexts.
新课程大纲保留了双份试卷的形式，但重新调整了主题分布。教师和学生都会发现，单纯记忆固定的事实不再像以前那样加分；相反，将理论知识应用于未知媒体文本和当代案例的能力，才是取得高分的核心。非考试评估任务简报现在每年发布一次，提供与当前行业背景相关的新鲜创意挑战。
2. Updated Exam Structure | 更新的考试结构
GCSE Media Studies will still be assessed through two written papers, each worth 35% of the total GCSE, plus the NEA component at 30%. Paper 1, titled 'Media One', lasts 1 hour 30 minutes and carries 84 marks. It focuses on Media Language, Representation, Industries and Audiences, assessed through a mix of short, medium and extended response questions. Crucially, Section A will include at least one unseen media text that students have never studied before, demanding on-the-spot analytical skills.
GCSE 媒体研究仍通过两份笔试和非考试评估来考核，每份试卷各占总成绩的 35%，非考试评估占 30%。试卷一标题为“媒体一”，时长 1 小时 30 分钟，满分 84 分。它侧重于媒体语言、再现、产业和受众，通过短答题、中等长度题和拓展题相结合的方式进行评估。关键的是，A 部分将包含至少一段学生从未学习过的未知媒体文本，这要求即时分析能力。
Paper 2, 'Media Two', also lasts 1 hour 30 minutes and is marked out of 84. It is organised around in-depth studies of specific media forms and set products, asking students to compare texts, evaluate contexts and synthesise knowledge across different platforms. There is no pre-released material for either paper; all texts needed for analysis are provided in the exam booklet or played as audio-visual clips in the exam hall, making the exams fully closed-book.
试卷二“媒体二”，同样时长 1 小时 30 分钟，满分 84 分。它围绕特定媒体形式和固定产品的深度研究来组织，要求学生比较文本、评价语境并综合不同平台的知识。两份试卷都没有提前发放的材料；所有分析所需的文本均随试卷提供，或在考场内以视听片段形式播放，使得考试完全闭卷。
3. Close Study Products (CSPs) Refresh | 近观产品更新
A defining feature of AQA Media Studies is the set of Close Study Products that anchor teaching and assessment. For the new specification, these CSPs have been significantly updated to ensure relevance and diversity. Television options now include contemporary series such as His Dark Materials (2019) and the Doctor Who 60th anniversary specials, offering rich material for exploring genre, narrative and institutional contexts.
AQA 媒体研究的一个标志性特征是一套近观产品（CSP），它们是教学与评估的锚点。对于新课程大纲，这些近观产品已经过大幅更新，以确保相关性和多样性。电视选项现在包括当代剧集，如《黑暗物质》（2019）和《神秘博士》60 周年特别篇，为探索类型、叙事和制度语境提供了丰富材料。
Film CSPs pair The Lego Movie (2014) with Black Panther (2018), allowing detailed comparison of mainstream blockbuster production, distribution and the representation of identity. Advertising and marketing products feature digital campaigns like the Nike 'Dream Crazy' advert alongside traditional print. Print media includes a contrast between The Guardian and The Sun newspapers, as well as magazines like GQ and Vogue. Online, social and participatory media are represented through case studies of influencers and activist platforms, such as Marcus Rashford's social media presence and the Zoella lifestyle brand, highlighting the shift towards prosumer culture.
电影近观产品将《乐高大电影》（2014）与《黑豹》（2018）配对，可详细比较主流大片的制作、发行以及身份再现。广告和营销产品则包括数字 campaign，如耐克“Dream Crazy”广告与传统平面广告并列。平面媒体涵盖《卫报》与《太阳报》的对比，以及《GQ》和《Vogue》等杂志。在线、社交与参与式媒体通过 KOL 和活动人士平台的案例研究呈现，例如马库斯·拉什福德的社交媒体形象和 Zoella 生活方式品牌，突显了产消者文化的转变。
4. NEA Changes: Creative Briefs Evolve | 非考试评估变化：创意简报演进
The Non-Exam Assessment remains a 30% coursework component, but the nature of the tasks has been reimagined. Students will respond to a brief set by AQA, released annually in the autumn of Year 11, which outlines a specific audience, purpose and media form. The brief demands the creation of a cross-media product, such as a website and a video sequence for a new television drama, or a podcast and social media campaign for a youth music brand.
非考试评估仍占 30% 的课程作业比重，但任务的性质已被重新构想。学生需要回应 AQA 每年秋季（11 年级）发布的简报，其中会明确特定的目标受众、目的和媒体形式。简报要求创作跨媒体产品，例如为新电视剧制作网站和视频片段，或为青年音乐品牌制作播客和社交媒体 campaign。
This move towards integrated production tasks reflects industry practice, where content is designed to converge across platforms. The marking criteria now reward technical competency, creative risk-taking and a clearly articulated rationale. Students must submit a statement of intent that demonstrates understanding of target audiences and the chosen media language. The NEA aims to bridge the gap between theoretical knowledge and real-world media production, making it a highly valuable preparation for creative careers.
这种转向整合型制作任务反映了行业实践——内容被设计为跨平台融合。评分标准现在奖励技术能力、创意冒险精神和清晰表述的理由。学生必须提交一份意图声明，展示对目标受众和所选媒体语言的理解。非考试评估旨在弥合理论知识与现实媒体制作之间的鸿沟，为创意职业生涯做极其宝贵的准备。
5. Closed-Book and Unseen Analysis | 闭卷考试与未知文本分析
One of the most significant shifts is that both exams are now strictly closed-book. In the previous specification, students could receive pre-released material such as magazine covers or film posters to study in advance. The new approach means you must think like a media analyst in real time. For Paper 1, you will encounter a print or moving image unseen extract and answer questions on its use of media language to construct meaning and represent social groups.
最重大的转变之一，是两份试卷现在均严格闭卷。在旧版大纲中，学生可以提前拿到预发材料，如杂志封面或电影海报进行预习。新方式意味着你必须实时像一位媒体分析师那样思考。在试卷一中，你会遇到一段平面或动态影像的未知摘录，并回答关于其如何运用媒体语言建构意义和再现社会群体的问题。
Unseen analysis rewards the ability to apply semiotic theory—denotation, connotation, camera angles, mise-en-scène—swiftly and accurately. To prepare, you should practise with a wide range of advertisements, news images and opening sequences from genres you haven't studied in class. The trend is clear: superficial memorisation of CSP facts will not suffice; deep understanding of the toolkit of media language is essential. This change aligns media studies more closely with English literature or language analysis, valuing interpretative agility.
未知文本分析奖励快速且准确地运用符号学理论的能力——外延、内涵、镜头角度、场面调度等。为做好准备，你应广泛练习课堂上未学过的广告、新闻图片和类型片头。趋势很明确：仅仅浅层记忆近观产品的事实是不够的；深刻理解媒体语言工具箱才是关键。这一变化使媒体研究更接近英语文学或语言分析，重视阐释的敏捷性。
6. Assessment Objective Weightings | 评估目标权重
The four Assessment Objectives (AOs) have been subtly recalibrated to emphasise higher-order thinking. AO1 (demonstrate knowledge and understanding of media concepts, contexts and critical debates) remains foundational but is now assessed predominantly through application rather than straightforward recall. AO2 (analyse media products using the theoretical framework) carries substantial weight, especially in the unseen and comparison questions where you must deconstruct texts using precise terminology.
四项评估目标（AO）的权重经过微调，以强调高阶思维。AO1（展示对媒体概念、语境和批判性争论的知识与理解）仍是基础，但现在主要通过应用而非简单回忆来评估。AO2（运用理论框架分析媒体产品）占有很大比重，尤其是在未知文本和对比题中，你必须使用精确术语解构文本。
AO3 (create media products for an intended audience, applying knowledge and understanding of media concepts) is assessed via the NEA and now explicitly requires evidence of iterative design and audience feedback. AO4 (evaluate your own practical work and that of others, making critical comparisons) is integrated into the production statement of intent and the extended essay questions in the exams. The balance means that for a top grade, you need to move from description to critical evaluation, showing awareness of how media products are shaped by economic, social and cultural forces.
AO3（为目标受众创作媒体产品，应用媒体概念的知识与理解）通过非考试评估考核，现在明确要求呈现迭代设计过程和受众反馈的证据。AO4（评价自身及他人的实践作品，进行批判性比较）融入了制作意图声明和考试中的拓展论文题。这一平衡意味着，要拿到最高等级，你需要从描述转向批判性评价，展现出对媒体产品如何受经济、社会和文化力量塑造的认知。
7. Refreshed Theoretical Framework | 更新的理论框架
The theoretical framework that underpins AQA Media Studies has been expanded to include a more inclusive range of thinkers. While classic narrative theorists like Todorov, Propp and Barthes remain, the framework now draws more heavily on postcolonial and feminist theories. Scholars such as Paul Gilroy (postcolonial melancholia, the Black Atlantic), bell hooks (intersectional feminism, oppositional gaze) and Judith Butler (gender performativity) are explicitly referenced in the specification as possible lenses for analysis.
支撑 AQA 媒体研究的理论框架已得到扩展，纳入了更具包容性的思想家范围。虽然托多罗夫、普罗普和巴特等经典叙事理论家依然在场，但该框架现在更倚重后殖民和女性主义理论。诸如保罗·吉尔罗伊（后殖民忧郁、黑色大西洋）、贝尔·胡克斯（交叉性女性主义、对抗性凝视）和朱迪斯·巴特勒（性别操演性）等学者，在大纲中被明确列为可能用于分析的理论视角。
Students are expected to apply these theories not as rigid dogma but as critical tools to unpack representations of race, gender and power. For example, analysing Black Panther through a Gilroy lens reveals how Afrofuturist imagery challenges Western-centric narratives. This trend encourages you to become a more politically and culturally conscious reader of the media, ready to engage with debates on diversity and equality that saturate contemporary media industries.
学生需要将这些理论作为批判性工具而非僵硬教条来运用，以解构种族、性别和权力的再现。例如，通过吉尔罗伊的视角分析《黑豹》，可揭示非洲未来主义意象如何挑战以西方为中心的叙事。这一趋势鼓励你成为更具政治和文化意识的媒体解读者，准备好参与充斥当代媒体产业的多元与平等辩论。
8. Focus on Digital and Social Media | 数字与社交媒体焦点
Recognising that today's teenagers are native users of platforms like TikTok, Instagram and YouTube, the new specification brings digital convergence and participatory culture firmly into the assessment. You will study online media through CSPs that include influencer branding, viral marketing and citizen journalism. Questions will frequently ask you to discuss how digital technologies have transformed traditional media forms, such as newspapers moving to digital-first publishing and the impact on audience interaction.
认识到当今青少年是 TikTok、Instagram 和 YouTube 等平台的天然用户，新课程大纲将数字融合和参与式文化牢牢纳入评估。你会通过包括网红品牌建设、病毒式营销和公民新闻在内的近观产品来学习在线媒体。题目经常会要求你讨论数字技术如何改变传统媒体形式，例如报纸转向数字优先出版及其对受众互动的影响。
The concept of prosumer—an audience member who both consumes and produces content—is now a central theoretical idea. You need to be able to analyse user-generated content, comment culture and the algorithmic shaping of what we see. This reflects a trend in media education towards preparing students to be critical digital citizens, understanding the business models behind 'free' platforms and the ethical issues surrounding data and privacy.
产消者——既消费又生产内容的受众成员——的概念现在是一个核心理论观点。你需要能够分析用户生成内容、评论文化以及算法对我们所见内容的塑造。这反映了媒体教育的一种趋势，即培养学生成为具有批判性的数字公民，理解“免费”平台背后的商业模式以及围绕数据与隐私的伦理问题。
9. Diversity and Representation in Set Texts | 固定文本中的多样性与再现
AQA has deliberately curated the CSP list to offer a more diverse, inclusive and globally aware selection. This is not merely a box-ticking exercise; it provides fertile ground for the high-level analysis of stereotyping, countertypes and the politics of representation. Texts like the Black Panther film, the Marcus Rashford campaign on child food poverty, and the representation of female athletes in Nike advertising all invite discussion of ethnicity, social class and disability.
AQA 有意识地策划了近观产品列表，以提供更具多样性、包容性和全球意识的选择。这绝非表面功夫；它为高阶分析刻板印象、反刻板类型以及再现政治提供了肥沃土壤。《黑豹》电影、马库斯·拉什福德消除儿童食品贫困的运动，以及耐克广告中女性运动员的再现等文本，都引发了对族裔、社会阶层和残障的讨论。
You will be expected to examine how media language constructs these identities and how audiences may respond differently based on their own social positioning. The exam trend rewards answers that acknowledge the complexity of representation—for example, discussing how a product can simultaneously challenge and reinforce certain stereotypes. This prepares you to approach media with nuance and to recognise the power relationships embedded in all media texts.
你需探讨媒体语言如何建构这些身份，以及不同社会定位的受众可能如何做出不同解读。考试趋势奖励那些承认再现复杂性的答案——例如，讨论一个产品如何同时挑战并强化某些刻板印象。这让你准备好以细微差别的视角接触媒体，并意识到所有媒体文本中隐含的权力关系。
10. Skills for 2027 and Beyond: What the Trends Mean for You | 2027年及以后的技能：趋势对你的意义
The exam changes signal a clear direction: AQA wants students who can think, not just remember. This means your Year 10 and 11 studies should prioritise live analysis of new media texts as they appear in the real world. Keep a media diary where you deconstruct a television advert, a news app notification or a viral TikTok trend using your theoretical toolkit. The 2026 school year will be full of mock exams and NEA preparation—those who habitually apply media theory in everyday life will have a distinct advantage.
考试变化指明了一个清晰方向：AQA 想要的是能思考的学生，而不仅仅是能记忆的学生。这意味着你在 10 年级和 11 年级的学习应优先训练对现实世界中出现的新媒体文本的现场分析。坚持写媒体日记，用你的理论工具箱解构电视广告、新闻应用推送或流行的 TikTok 趋势。2026 学年将充满模拟考和非考试评估准备——那些习惯在日常生活中运用媒体理论的人将拥有显著优势。
Collaboration, creativity and critical self-reflection are the new currencies. The NEA rewards resilient, iterative design, not a first-draft perfection. Engage with feedback loops, test your products on target audiences and be ready to justify every creative choice. In the exams, time management and structured analysis under closed-book conditions will be key. Practice writing concise paragraphs that pair a technical code, a connotation and a link to representation or industry—a formula that works across both papers. Ultimately, the trends reveal a subject that is more alive, more demanding and more relevant than ever before.
协作、创造力和批判性自我反思是新的硬通货。非考试评估奖励坚韧不拔、迭代设计的过程，而非初稿即完美。积极参与反馈循环，将产品在目标受众中测试，并准备为每一项创意选择辩护。在考试中，时间管理和在闭卷条件下的结构化分析至关重要。练习撰写简洁的段落，将技术符码、内涵及与再现或产业的联系配对——这一公式在两张试卷中都行之有效。归根结底，趋势揭示了一门比以往任何时候都更有活力、要求更高、更贴近现实的学科。
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