CCN201 The Digital Creative Economy and the Future of Work


To view more information for this unit, select Unit Outline from the list below. Please note the teaching period for which the Unit Outline is relevant.


Unit Outline: Flexible Period - 04A 2024, Kelvin Grove, Internal (Start Date: 26 Feb 2024)

Unit code:CCN201
Credit points:12
Equivalent:CCQ201
Coordinator:Brendan Keogh | brendan.keogh@qut.edu.au
Disclaimer - Offer of some units is subject to viability, and information in these Unit Outlines is subject to change prior to commencement of the teaching period.

Overview

This unit explores how changes in the broader digital creative economy impact on media and communication industries and the working lives of communication professionals. To develop effective communication strategies and pursue work opportunities, communication professionals need to have an understanding of how the new digital creative economy operates, emerging trends in the digital economy, and how to thrive in this environment as a digital communication professional. As such, the unit provides an advanced and critical understanding of the evolution of the broader digital creative economy, how it disrupts the communication and media industries, and the specific implications for the future of digital communication professionals.

Learning Outcomes

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

  1. Critically analyse the future of work within the digital creative economy and the impacts on communication professionals.
  2. Critically evaluate current media and communication research about the changing digital creative economy and its impacts on global media and communication.
  3. Use information literacy skills to write a research case study.
  4. Create a career plan for a communication professional.

Content

This unit will explore topics such as:

  • What is the digital creative economy?
  • Digital Disruption and the global Media and Communication Industries
  • Creative Industries
  • Employment trends and the future of work in the digital creative economy
  • Skills and capabilities required by communication professionals working in the digital creative economy
  • Conditions of work and labour including the Gig economy
  • Public policy issues in the digital creative economy
  • The impact of cryptocurrencies and blockchain technologies on communication
  • Writing industry focused reports
  • Risk and trust in the digital creative industries.

Learning Approaches

This unit is taught via a blended approach that combines elements of online delivery and face-to-face and may include intensive delivery. Face-to-face learning activities may include lectures and tutorials supported by additional online activities and materials. It will be facilitated by a unit coordinator using a flipped learning approach. This approach requires you to complete online activities independently, prior to attending the face-to-face classes conducted in collaborative learning spaces. Indicative learning experiences in this unit may include:

  • participating in class/online tutorial discussions
  • attending lectures
  • viewing mini-lecture videos
  • listening to podcasts
  • viewing TED Talks on the future of work
  • reading book chapters, scholarly and industry articles
  • panel sessions with industry experts
  • giving and receiving peer feedback
  • applying scholarship and research to understand changes in the media and communication industries
  • writing a research case study.

Feedback opportunities from members of the teaching team and your peers will be integrated into the unit as outlined in the Feedback to students section of this unit outline.

Feedback on Learning and Assessment

You will receive feedback on your learning in a variety of ways, including:

  • Informal formative feedback will be provided via pre-workshop and/or in workshop quizzes, self-assessment tools, peer feedback and through individual or whole of class feedback in online or face-to-face class discussions, the debriefing of learning activities or via comments in online communities.
  • Formal written or recorded feedback will be received on both formative and summative assessment tasks via Turnitin or the Canvas Assignment tool, in addition to the grade on the Criterion Reference Assessment sheet.
  • Feedback on your formative assessment task will be received prior to the submission of your summative assessment task.

Assessment

Overview

You will be required to complete two assessment items during this unit: a research case study and a career plan. These assessment items will assess your ability to undertake independent research, critically analyse the impacts of the digital creative economy on the media and communication industries (especially in terms of the future of work and employment) and to write a career plan that considers the knowledge, skills, capabilities and strategies you will need to develop to thrive in the digital creative economy.

Opportunities to complete formative activities, which mirror the assessment tasks, will be available online or in workshops to help you to gauge your progress. Opportunities for teaching team and peer feedback will be integrated into the unit.

Unit Grading Scheme

7- point scale

Assessment Tasks

Assessment: Case Study

You will undertake research and produce a case study that considers the specific impacts of the digital creative economy on a sector of the global media and communication industries.

This is an assignment for the purposes of an extension.

Weight: 50
Individual/Group: Individual
Due (indicative): Mid teaching period
Related Unit learning outcomes: 1, 2, 3

Assessment: Career Plan

Drawing on material introduced in this unit about the future of work you are required to create a five-year career plan, where you will identify the types of roles you will peruse, the knowledge, skills and capabilities needed for these roles and the strategies you will use to assist you to be able to constantly learn, adapt and respond to industry disruption. You will justify this plan through reference to scholarship and research introduced in this unit.

This is an assignment for the purposes of an extension.

Weight: 50
Individual/Group: Individual
Due (indicative): End teaching period
Related Unit learning outcomes: 1, 2, 4

Academic Integrity

Students are expected to engage in learning and assessment at QUT with honesty, transparency and fairness. Maintaining academic integrity means upholding these principles and demonstrating valuable professional capabilities based on ethical foundations.

Failure to maintain academic integrity can take many forms. It includes cheating in examinations, plagiarism, self-plagiarism, collusion, and submitting an assessment item completed by another person (e.g. contract cheating). It can also include providing your assessment to another entity, such as to a person or website.

You are encouraged to make use of QUT’s learning support services, resources and tools to assure the academic integrity of your assessment. This includes the use of text matching software that may be available to assist with self-assessing your academic integrity as part of the assessment submission process.

Further details of QUT’s approach to academic integrity are outlined in the Academic integrity policy and the Student Code of Conduct. Breaching QUT’s Academic integrity policy is regarded as student misconduct and can lead to the imposition of penalties ranging from a grade reduction to exclusion from QUT.

Requirements to Study

Requirements

All students and staff who access campus buildings and facilities are required to complete the Tier 1 General Health and Safety Induction. This must be completed online.

Resources

  • Cite|Write
  • Unit Canvas site.

Resource Materials

Other

To enable your full participation in the virtual learning environment, for example, participating in online activities and engaging with online learning materials, you will need access to a reliable computer with an internet connection, webcam, headset and microphone, as well as a learning environment where you are able to fully participate undisturbed when required.

Risk Assessment Statement

For risks associated with using campus buildings or facilities, refer to the Tier 1 General Health and Safety Induction.

You are advised to back-up your digital files on a regular basis to ensure work is not lost if there is a hardware failure. Information about the free file storage provided by QUT for students is available on the Storing your files page.

There are no out of the ordinary risks associated with this unit.