Support material

Learning activity 3
This material will help you reinforce the grammar and vocabulary related to
learning activity 3 of level 7. Learn more about media literacy and tag questions
by developing the following proposed activities.

Presentation

Mass Media are channels of communication that make sense within a specific
culture and they are presented to many people at the same time. It is important
to remember that one of the characteristics of mass media is that it is presented
exactly in the same way to all target audiences. Second, Critical Thinking is an
ability that can be developed. This ability is basically used to analyze
information and arrive to your personal conclusion using observation,
experience, reasoning and logic. Thus, Mass Media Literacy can only happen
when people know about the concepts of mass media and critical thinking.

a. Taking a second look

Media literacy is all about this first statement. Taking a second look basically
tells us that when we hear or look at media, we can miss some things. In
that sense, by hearing or looking twice we will be able to catch information
that may have slipped our attention.

b. Media texts have a target audience and specific purposes

This sentence tells us that, as any other text, media texts have something to
achieve. Each text has a clear reason to be created, purposes can be to
entertain, to inform, to persuade, to make money, to explain, to argue, or to
instruct, and they are mostly linked to the target audience.

Another feature of media is that they use techniques in order to help

messages reach their targets.
 Technique Example
Identification The perfume for todays women.
Generalization Everybody prefers Black dog
wine.
Emotional appeal Most women like puppies and
babies.
Celebrity endorsement Famous models enjoy Black dog
wine.

c. Every medium is a construction

What the above title means is that media are not real. They are the result of
a carefully planned and made up strategy to deliver a message.

d. Media build versions out of reality

A great deal of media is based on real events, but if you had the chance to
talk to a real witness, for example a real person involved in the event, that
person would tell you that the real situation was quite different.

e. Media interpretation depends on you

What you think or conclude after being exposed to a media text, depends
greatly on you. Its message might keep you thinking for a while or you can
think that you liked it one moment, and that you disliked it the next time, and
so on and so forth until you finally discover the meaning for you or to settle
your personal reaction.

f. Money and media go together

Media are industries, and as any other industry, they are trying to get a profit
out of their core business by selling something. It can be a product, an idea,
a way of living, etc. That is why media texts are often filled with ads.

g. Media encourage an ideology

At some level, media are like people; they express values and social and
political beliefs. Whenever exposed to a media text, you could identify what
the ideas of the people who produced it are. Remember that the elements in
a text message are not there just because.

Tag questions are a grammatical structure that helps sentences turn into
confirmation questions by adding an interrogative phrase. They are
commonly used to confirm the given information in the previous statement.
 An affirmative sentence goes with a negative tag and a negative sentence
goes with an affirmative tag. You also have to consider the grammar tense,
the person, and the verb.

To use tag questions properly you have to keep in mind the following table.

Tense Statement Tag question

Verb to be It is a book, isnt it?
present
Present simple He reads a lot of books, doesnt he?
Present He isnt reading a book, is he?
continuous
Verb to be past It wasnt a book, was it?
Simple past He read a book, didnt he?
Future with will He will read a book, wont he?
Future with going She is going to read a isnt she?
to book,
Present perfect They have read the havent they?
book,
Present perfect We have been reading havent we?
continuous a book,
Past perfect You hadnt read the had you?
book,
Should She should read that shouldnt she?
book,
Can I cant read the book, can I?
Have to He has to read a book, hasnt he?

Practice

A. Read the following media text and fill the chart.

 Fuente: SENA

Product

Message

Feelings

Target
audience
Advertiser

B. Match the headings to the specific purpose.

a.

b.
 c.

d.

e.
Fuente de imgenes: SENA

To sell

To provide direction

To persuade

To propagandize

To inform

C. Fill in the blanks with the appropriate tag questions.

Massive media is all around us.

Media texts have a target audience and specific
purposes.
Media are not real.
A great deal of media is based on real events.
Media are industries.
Mass Media are channels of communication that
 make sense within a specific culture.
You will be able to interpret and make decisions
based on your own opinion.
Media texts are versions of reality carefully
constructed by means of setting a purpose.
Media are like people; they express values and social
and political beliefs.
Thinking is an ability that can be developed.

Production

A. According its purpose complete the chart with media texts examples (two
per category) such as: television commercials or programs, layouts, radio
commercials or programs, newspapers, speech or films.

Purpose Media texts examples

To sell 1.
2.
To provide direction 1.
2.
To persuade 1.
2.
To propagandize 1.
2.
To inform 1.
2.

B. Write a paragraph describing a television program you like. Use media

literacy vocabulary to reflect about it. (250 words).

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Document control

Name Position Dependence Date

Theme expert Direccin de

Asesor English Dot formacin November
Author Mauricio Aldana
Works - Programa profesional. 2014
de bilingismo Direccin General

Centro
Rachman Copy editor Lnea October
Adaptation Agroindustrial.
Bustillo Martnez de produccin 2015
Regional Quindo