Students

FOAR7003 – Digital Literacies for Researchers

2023 – Session 2, In person-scheduled-weekday, North Ryde

General Information

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Unit convenor and teaching staff Unit convenor and teaching staff Unit Convenor
Kirstin Mills
kirstin.mills@mq.edu.au
Contact via Email
Room 752, Level 7, 25B Wally's Walk (Arts Precinct)
By appointment (please email to set up a time to meet on campus or online)
Credit points Credit points
10
Prerequisites Prerequisites
Admission to BPhil/MRes
Corequisites Corequisites
Co-badged status Co-badged status
Unit description Unit description

Digital technologies are rapidly changing the face and shaping the future of research; the most innovative projects in the arts and humanities increasingly involve digital approaches in their design or communication. World-ready researchers must be able to navigate the digital sphere and recognise the dynamic and exciting potential offered by digital technology for their own research, while also critically assessing digital technologies. In this unit, which caters to dgital beginners and enthusiasts alike, students will learn how to think critically and creatively about potential new directions opened up for research by digital technologies, and how these might be applied to their own disciplines and research projects. Students will learn how to harness digital tools and technologies to enhance, optimise and automate their own research practices, focusing especially on how to use digital tools for research communication, engagement and impact. They will also learn how to think critically about the practical issues and ethics of the digital world. This unit equips students with an understanding of the exciting new research possibilities emerging at the ever-evolving digital frontier, an awareness of the ethical questions involved in digital research, and the ability to apply digital tools and digital communication to their own research practices.

Important Academic Dates

Information about important academic dates including deadlines for withdrawing from units are available at https://www.mq.edu.au/study/calendar-of-dates

Learning Outcomes

On successful completion of this unit, you will be able to:

  • ULO1: Recognise the environment of research transparency and research ethics.
  • ULO2: Make informed and logical judgements of the arguments of others to arrive at reasoned and meaningful arguments and positions, and formulate and apply new ideas to new contexts.
  • ULO3: Apply a high level of oral, written and technological communication skills, with specialisation for the specific needs of a discipline, including the ability to explain a technical subject to a non-technical audience.
  • ULO4: Investigate at an advanced level the theories, principles and concepts within a discipline area.
  • ULO5: Identify existing digital tools and approaches and apply them to their research.

General Assessment Information

Late Assessment Submission Penalty 

University Assessment Policy is as follows:

Unless a Special Consideration request has been submitted and approved, a 5% penalty (of the total possible mark) will be applied each day a written assessment is not submitted, up until the 7th day (including weekends). After the 7th day, a mark of‚ 0 (zero) will be awarded even if the assessment is submitted. Submission time for all written assessments is set at 11.55pm. A 1-hour grace period is provided to students who experience a technical issue.

This late penalty will apply to non-timed sensitive assessment (incl essays, reports, posters, portfolios, journals, recordings etc). Late submission of time sensitive tasks (such as tests/exams, performance assessments/presentations, scheduled practical assessments/labs etc) will only be addressed by the unit convenor in a Special consideration application. Special Consideration outcome may result in a new question or topic. 

Assessment Tasks

Name Weighting Hurdle Due
Digital Engagement 10% No Weekly (Weeks 2,3,4,5,6,7,8,9,10,12)
Digital Research Communication 30% No 17/09/23
Digital Storytelling 60% No 22/10/23

Digital Engagement

Assessment Type 1: Participatory task
Indicative Time on Task 2: 10 hours
Due: Weekly (Weeks 2,3,4,5,6,7,8,9,10,12)
Weighting: 10%

 

Students will practice their digital engagement and communication skills through short weekly social media posts reflecting on class content. Posts must be made during the relevant week of class.

 
On successful completion you will be able to:
  • Recognise the environment of research transparency and research ethics.
  • Apply a high level of oral, written and technological communication skills, with specialisation for the specific needs of a discipline, including the ability to explain a technical subject to a non-technical audience.

Digital Research Communication

Assessment Type 1: Non-academic writing
Indicative Time on Task 2: 30 hours
Due: 17/09/23
Weighting: 30%

 

Students will produce a researched blog post or online article written for a public audience.

 
On successful completion you will be able to:
  • Recognise the environment of research transparency and research ethics.
  • Make informed and logical judgements of the arguments of others to arrive at reasoned and meaningful arguments and positions, and formulate and apply new ideas to new contexts.
  • Apply a high level of oral, written and technological communication skills, with specialisation for the specific needs of a discipline, including the ability to explain a technical subject to a non-technical audience.
  • Investigate at an advanced level the theories, principles and concepts within a discipline area.
  • Identify existing digital tools and approaches and apply them to their research.

Digital Storytelling

Assessment Type 1: Media presentation
Indicative Time on Task 2: 60 hours
Due: 22/10/23
Weighting: 60%

 

Students will create a short digital video presentation that showcases and analyses an existing Digital Humanities project in their field or discipline. Students will submit the video and the video transcript.

 
On successful completion you will be able to:
  • Recognise the environment of research transparency and research ethics.
  • Make informed and logical judgements of the arguments of others to arrive at reasoned and meaningful arguments and positions, and formulate and apply new ideas to new contexts.
  • Apply a high level of oral, written and technological communication skills, with specialisation for the specific needs of a discipline, including the ability to explain a technical subject to a non-technical audience.
  • Investigate at an advanced level the theories, principles and concepts within a discipline area.
  • Identify existing digital tools and approaches and apply them to their research.

1 If you need help with your assignment, please contact:

  • the academic teaching staff in your unit for guidance in understanding or completing this type of assessment
  • the Writing Centre for academic skills support.

2 Indicative time-on-task is an estimate of the time required for completion of the assessment task and is subject to individual variation

Delivery and Resources

All classes for this unit are online. Please see iLearn site for specific dates, times and locations of classes.

Policies and Procedures

Macquarie University policies and procedures are accessible from Policy Central (https://policies.mq.edu.au). Students should be aware of the following policies in particular with regard to Learning and Teaching:

Students seeking more policy resources can visit Student Policies (https://students.mq.edu.au/support/study/policies). It is your one-stop-shop for the key policies you need to know about throughout your undergraduate student journey.

To find other policies relating to Teaching and Learning, visit Policy Central (https://policies.mq.edu.au) and use the search tool.

Student Code of Conduct

Macquarie University students have a responsibility to be familiar with the Student Code of Conduct: https://students.mq.edu.au/admin/other-resources/student-conduct

Results

Results published on platform other than eStudent, (eg. iLearn, Coursera etc.) or released directly by your Unit Convenor, are not confirmed as they are subject to final approval by the University. Once approved, final results will be sent to your student email address and will be made available in eStudent. For more information visit ask.mq.edu.au or if you are a Global MBA student contact globalmba.support@mq.edu.au

Academic Integrity

At Macquarie, we believe academic integrity – honesty, respect, trust, responsibility, fairness and courage – is at the core of learning, teaching and research. We recognise that meeting the expectations required to complete your assessments can be challenging. So, we offer you a range of resources and services to help you reach your potential, including free online writing and maths support, academic skills development and wellbeing consultations.

Student Support

Macquarie University provides a range of support services for students. For details, visit http://students.mq.edu.au/support/

The Writing Centre

The Writing Centre provides resources to develop your English language proficiency, academic writing, and communication skills.

The Library provides online and face to face support to help you find and use relevant information resources. 

Student Services and Support

Macquarie University offers a range of Student Support Services including:

Student Enquiries

Got a question? Ask us via AskMQ, or contact Service Connect.

IT Help

For help with University computer systems and technology, visit http://www.mq.edu.au/about_us/offices_and_units/information_technology/help/. 

When using the University's IT, you must adhere to the Acceptable Use of IT Resources Policy. The policy applies to all who connect to the MQ network including students.

Unit information based on version 2023.02 of the Handbook