In this assessment, you will reflect on your own sources of information via media and other sources, and then take steps towards expanding those sources.

Over the course of a week, we want you to take notice of where you get your information from, with a focus on online environments. Consider all types and sources of information, including government, media, industry as well as family and friends. Consider which topics (i.e. environment, politics, parenting), sources (i.e. ABC News, Queensland Health, family members) and platforms (i.e Facebook, TikTok, Instagram) you receive your information about or from.

Once you have finished your week of observation, investigate 2-3 things you can do to increase your sources of information. Take practical steps to enact these.

At the end of the week, write a 500-700 word reflection which;

• Explains key unit concepts (i.e critical thinking, misinformation and disinformation)
• Provides a summary of your reflections over the week. Where do you get information from? Do you receive information from a broad range of sources? Are those sources reputable?
• Summarises (at least three) steps you have taken to increase your range of media consumption. You will need to justify your choices and support with links to unit material.

Other Information

As hard as it can be, try to simply observe your sources of information during the week, not make changes. For example, if you don’t usually read the Financial Review over your morning Weetbix, this is not the week to begin! We are not here to judge you and your grades will not be impacted if you reflect on how you receive information from a limited range of sources. Avoid the temptation to ‘sound smarter’- focus on being truthful.

When writing about social media, please try to be as specific as possible. Rather than ‘social media’, name the platform you are referring to- Facebook, Twitter, TikTok.

A template has been provided on Moodle to guide your submission. Use of this template is strongly encouraged. 

Use of first-person language (‘I, We’) is encouraged for this assessment.

Use of GenAI tools in this assessment 

Within this unit, the use of Gen AI agents (including but not limited to ChatGPT and Microsoft CoPilot) is as follows: 

•  Gen AI can be used for content editing

Submission Instructions

This assessment will be submitted directly to Moodle. Additional instructions about submitting your assessment is available on the Moodle Support for Students site, or by asking the unit coordinator. 

Marking Criteria

A full marking criteria will be provided on Moodle, however you will be assessed based on your attention to completion of requirements of task, presentation & structure, quality of reflection and justification.

A full marking criteria will be provided on Moodle, however you will be assessed based on your attention to completion of requirements of task, presentation & structure, quality of reflection and justification.

In this assessment, you are required to critically analyse the representation of scientific news in the news media. You will choose one news article available on the unit Moodle page, as well as the media release related to the research issued by the institution or organisation who sponsored the research. Based on the information in the news report and media release, you will need to locate the original journal article relating to the scientific research quoted in the news media article. 

In 700-800 words, critically analyse the representation of the research in the news article by considering how the research has been translated from the original academic journal article, to the media release, to the final news media product. In particular, discuss whether or not the research has been represented accurately and objectively. Evaluate whether the information presented in the news media article is a fair representation of the information presented in the media release and the original journal article. You should also indicate whether or not the research is peer-reviewed. You will also be required to submit a self-assessed marking criteria (ie. you have marked yourself against the marking criteria) to reflect that you have engaged with the requirements and attempted to critically evaluate yourself.

Other Information

You will need to use the university library database to access the original journal article relating to the scientific research quoted in the news media article. The CQU Library has access to these journal articles, you will not be expected to purchase or otherwise source the article. The CQU library database will also help you to ascertain whether or not the academic journal is peer-reviewed.

You will need to include references from the unit’s reading list as well as finding your own supporting material.

Use of GenAI tools in this assessment 

Within this unit, the use of Gen AI agents (including but not limited to ChatGPT and Microsoft CoPilot) is as follows: 

• Gen AI content can used to generate ideas and general structures
• Gen AI can be used for content editing

Submission Instructions

This assessment will be submitted directly to Moodle. Additional instructions about submitting your assessment is available on the Moodle Support for Students site, or by asking the unit coordinator.

Marking Criteria

A full marking criteria will be provided on Moodle, however you will be assessed based on your attention to completion of requirements of task, presentation & structure, analysis content and quality.

A full marking criteria will be provided on Moodle, however you will be assessed based on your attention to completion of requirements of task, presentation & structure, analysis content and quality.

In this assessment, you will embark on a fact-checking challenge to separate truth from fiction in online environments. You will choose a trending topic or event on social media and analyse the information presented to identify instances of misinformation or misleading content. This might also include illogical fallacies or defamatory statements- a wide range of issues you have investigated throughout the term. You can use a wide range of information, from reliable sources of information such as news articles, official statements and academic journals, to less reputable sources of information, such as online videos, social media content and commentary. You will be required to submit these pieces with your assessment as part of your overall portfolio. 

Identify any text (content) which could misinform or mislead readers and explain why this is problematic. Your analysis should be presented in a report format, and should be no more than 1500 words. 

Then, based on the topic you've chosen, create a media product which promotes accurate information dissemination in online environments. Your media product can be in the form of a social media post, infographic, video, or any other relevant format. You can use any creative tools and techniques to make your media product fun and engaging. The aim of the media product is to inform the public of the issue at hand, and to encourage critical thinking. 

Your media product needs to be accompanied by a short reflection (no more than 500 words) on the decisions you made during the creative process. Questions you might discuss in the reflection include: 

- Was it challenging to put together a piece which was both engaging for the audience, but also accurate? How did you address or overcome those challenges? 

- Did you decide to include references in the visual piece? Why, or why not?

You will also be required to submit a self-assessed marking criteria (ie. you have marked yourself against the marking criteria) to reflect that you have engaged with the requirements and attempted to critically evaluate yourself.

Other Information

Allowing you a wide choice for your media product encourages you to be creative, build on your skill set and work with your existing strengths. As working professionals you will likely be required to create visually-pleasing content for distribution on social media and web platforms however this is not a design unit and you are not expected to produce professional-quality material.

While you can choose to use any creative tools, we suggest trying Adobe Express (or a similar platform like Canva) for creating your visual material. Instructions will be given on Moodle for using Adobe Creative Cloud Express. Adapting an existing Adobe Express template is perfectly acceptable for this assessment. 

If you choose to submit a video for your media product, your content should be less than 45 seconds.

Your report should be supported by a comprehensive reference list. You should use unit materials and readings along with your own research about the topic.

Use of GenAI tools in this assessment 

Within this unit, the use of Gen AI agents (including but not limited to ChatGPT and Microsoft CoPilot) is as follows: 

• Gen AI content can used to generate ideas and general structures
• Gen AI can be used for content editing
• Gen AI content generation can be used to assist you develop visual materials (such as inbuilt tools in design programs) 

Submission Instructions

This assessment will be submitted to Moodle. Additional instructions about submitting your assessment is available on the unit Moodle site, or by asking the unit coordinator.

Marking Criteria

A full marking criteria will be provided on Moodle, however you will be assessed based on your attention to completion of requirements of task, presentation & structure, justification, and media product.

A full marking criteria will be provided on Moodle, however you will be assessed based on your attention to completion of requirements of task, presentation & structure, justification, and media product.