Intermediate
60 mins
Teacher/Student led
+75 XP
Pupils work on their own device

The Comparison Rubric: Topic, Purpose, Audience

You will build a reusable comparison rubric template using the criteria of topic, purpose and audience. You will apply this template to two sample pieces covering the same library news event and save it for future media analysis work.

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    1 - Getting Started ~5 mins

    You have already looked at visual and print media on their own. Soon you will put three coverages of the same event side by side for M3 KA2.

    Key point

    Side-by-side only works when you decide the questions up front. Today you build a reusable Comparison Rubric Template around three criteria: topic, purpose and audience. You will test it on two short sample pieces and file the finished template in your Communication Portfolio.

    2 - The Three Things ~8 mins

    Key point

    Every media piece answers three questions. Ask them in this order.

    TermWhat it means for youReal example
    Topic (what the piece is actually about)You name the subject in one plain line, not the spinA post that looks like a match report but is really about a player leaving
    Purpose (why it exists)You say what it wants the reader to know, feel or doA canteen notice that wants you to pre-order by Thursday
    Audience (who it is for)You name the people it was built to reachA parish newsletter written for older neighbours, not for first years

    Worked example on one short print notice (a different sample from the ones you will judge later):

    "Pre-order your hot lunch by Thursday. Orders close at 3pm. Collect Friday from 12:30 at the hatch. Cash or school card only."

    Worked example

    Topic: pre-ordering Friday hot lunch. Purpose: get students to order before Thursday 3pm and collect at the hatch. Audience: students who use the canteen. Short lines and plain times fit that audience; a hype caption would not.

    3 - Agree the Criteria ~10 mins

    Build the questions your rubric will ask under topic, purpose and audience. Start from three rough drafts: What is this about? Why was it made? Who is it for? Sharpen each one in your own words until it is short enough to fit in a cell and would work on any channel, then add it under its heading below.

    The list is not saved, so type the agreed questions into the box below as well.

    Questions our comparison rubric will ask

    4 - Weigh Them ~15 mins

    Two short sample texts cover the same library news (invented classroom sources, not real campaigns). Read both in full, then write topic, purpose and audience yourself in each cell. Rate the pieces and set how much each criterion matters. Watch which one comes out ahead when you change the weights.

    Before you move on

    Copy one full cell set (topic, purpose and audience for the piece you trust more) into the work area below. You will paste that set straight into your Portfolio template next.

    Piece A: council print notice (on the library door)
    "Milltown Library opens Sundays from next week. Doors from eleven. Free Wi-Fi, study desks, and a kids' corner. Full timetable on the council site."

    Piece B: student council social post (caption under a photo of the study desks by the window)
    "Sunday study space is back at the library. Doors open from 11: desks, free Wi-Fi, quiet corners. Who is in? Tag a friend. Full times on the council site."

    Same library news, two channels

    5 - Your Verdict ~17 mins

    Key point

    This sheet is the tool you will open when three real channels about the same event land on your desk for M3 KA2. Lock your Comparison Rubric Template now.

    1. Copy your three agreed questions into the Question column.
    2. Paste one worked cell set from Weigh Them (topic, purpose and audience) into the Worked sample column.
    3. Optional: name the event and Channel 1 / 2 / 3 on the lines above the table only. Leave the table's Channel 1, 2 and 3 columns blank until KA2.
    4. Write one line on how you will use this sheet on three real channels.
    5. Glance at your own grid the way a classmate would, then name one priority to tighten.
    6. File it in your Communication Portfolio as m3_l69_comparison_rubric_<your-initials>.
    Note

    Your Portfolio entry is the grid: questions, worked sample, empty channel columns, reuse line.

    Read your grid, then lock the file

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