Three projects from QUT Digital Media Research Centre researchers have been awarded a combined total of more than $1.75 million in the latest Australian Research Council (ARC) Discovery Projects scheme.
The ARC Discovery Projects scheme aims to expand knowledge base and research capacity in Australia, as well as economic, commercial, environmental, social and/or cultural benefits.
Congratulations to DMRC researchers Professor Amanda Lotz, Professor Anna Potter, Association Professor Stephen Harrington, Associate Professor Michelle Riedlinger, Professor Peta Mitchell, Distinguished Professor Jean Burgess, Dr Aaron Snoswell, and Dr Naomi Barnes.
DMRC Director Professor Daniel Angus said the success in this round was a reflection of the Centre’s ongoing research excellence.
“The success of these ARC Discovery projects highlights the DMRC’s interdisciplinary strength, bringing together researchers across diverse fields and career stages to tackle pressing questions about media, technology, and society. By fostering collaboration among emerging scholars and leading experts, the DMRC continues to drive innovative research that delivers cultural, social, and economic impact.”
Funding has been awarded for projects from multiple DMRC Research Programs. The details* of the three funded projects are:
Understanding Twenty-First Century Media Uses and Purposes ($898,289)
Investigators: Professor Amanda Lotz; Professor Jonathan Gray; Professor Anna Potter; Associate Professor Stephen Harrington; Professor Sonya Dal Cin
This project will investigate why Australians choose to use the media available to them and how they select their media diet to assess the implications of the changed cultural roles media play in our lives and the consequences of a fractured media environment.
How we use media technologies and content today are radically changed from when core theories about the role of media in society were established and media content was widely shared at a national level. The program of research will use multiple methods to explore how Australians engage an unprecedented range of content and sources. The project will generate the knowledge needed to address pressing sociocultural issues of our time such as social cohesion, misinformation, and belonging.
Generative AI and the future of academic writing and publishing ($512,091)
Investigators: Associate Professor Michelle Riedlinger; Professor Peta Mitchell; Dr Jake Goldenfein; Distinguished Professor Jean Burgess; Dr Aaron Snoswell
This project investigates how GenAI technologies are shaping the future of academic research from search to publication, including how academic publishers and peak research advisory bodies are responding to the potential of these technologies.
This project examines the impact of Generative AI (GenAI) technologies on scholarly research and publishing. The project develops a framework for understanding the sociotechnical drivers shaping the debate and establishes cross-sector principles to promote a more consistent and critical response by key stakeholders. In doing so, it supports ongoing learning within scholarly communities for a more responsive national research system, optimising GenAI for public good.
Curriculum, resources and teachers’ work ($343,172)
Investigators: Associate Professor Anna Hogan; Dr Naomi Barnes; Professor Greg Thompson
This project aims to investigate the capacity of commercial curriculum resources to alleviate teacher workload concerns.
Research estimates over two thirds of teachers either have a personal subscription to a curriculum resource platform like ‘Teachers pay Teachers’ (TpT) or Twinkl, or pay to download resources found via hyperlink from Pinterest. TpT, for example, is the largest shadow curriculum platform globally, housing over 3 million curriculum resources that have been downloaded more than 1 billion times.
Despite the global popularity of commercial curriculum resources, little is known about their impact on teachers’ curriculum work. Concerningly, up to 30% of downloaded resources have been found to be inappropriate for, or potentially harmful to, students of marginalised identities due to their content and messaging. Additionally, the lack of transparency about who creates and distributes these resources increases the risk that vested interests can present misinformation on topics, such as climate change, as fact.
*QUT Digital Media Research Centre researchers in bold.