Dr Rhian Morgan ~ Senior Principal and Academic Head, Academic Pathways

Rhian is a digital anthropologist and teaching specialist with the Division of Student Life at James Cook University. As coordinator of a multi-disciplinary digital literacies subject within JCU’s Diploma of Higher Education, Rhian’s current work is primarily orientated around equity in higher education and technology enabled learning. Her primary areas of expertise are digital literacies, eLearning and curriculum design, and user experience (UX) research. Her PhD “Virtually Reality” (2014) examined the phenomenology of user-interface and game design, in addition to the integration of virtual currencies into multi-user virtual worlds. In recent years her research has been orientated towards digital literacies and pedagogical practice, widening participation, and learning design. She has participated in international research collaborations examining digital literacies in the Asia-Pacific region. In addition to investigating students' uses of and dispositions towards technologies in enabling spaces.

Rhian's work in adaptive eLearning resulted in the compilation of findings into a digital showcase for publication as part of the IRU’s National Innovation Case Study Collection. You can also view her work on career development learning and ePortfolios in the Career's & Employability's StaffToolkit. She has recently participated in an inter-disciplinary collaboration evaluating outcomes of a school-based STEM engagement programs for girls in regional Northern Australia. Rhian is currently engaged in the development of an “Integrated Curriculum Alignment Framework” in collaboration with a pathways colleague. This framework is orientated towards mediating the intersectional complexities faced by regional sub-degree students, with a view to promoting academic resilience and inter-subject knowledge transfer. A podcast discussing the application of this framework to subject development during the Covid-19 pandemic is available via the ACHRC website. Further details of the application of this framework to teaching digital literacies at JCU can be found on LTSE's Assessment Case Studies website. 

Teaching

• CH0020: Preparatory Chemistry (Level 0; TSV)
• CS1022: Learning in a Digital Environment (Level 1; CNS & TSV)
• ED1481: Educational Psychology: Learners and Learning (Level 1; TSV)
• FS0120: Foundations of Academic Practice (Level 0; TSV)

Interests

Research

• Digital Literacy
• UX Research
• Game Studies
• eLearning
• Digital Anthropology
• Curriculum Design

Teaching

• Digital Literacy
• Anthropology

Experience

• 2017 to 2018 - Lecturer & Tutor: Graduate Certificate of Academic Practice, Learning, Teaching & Student Engagement, James Cook University (Townsville, Australia)
• 2009 to 2014 - Project Officer, College of Arts, Society, & Education, James Cook University (Townsville, Australia)
• 2008 to 2013 - Sessional Tutor, College of Arts, Society, & Education, James Cook University (Townsville, Australia)

Research Disciplines

• Sociology (4410)
• Curriculum and pedagogy (3901)

Awards

• 2019 - Australian Awards for University Teaching (AAUT)
• 2018 - JCU Citation for Outstanding Contributions to Student Learning
• 2015 - Dean's Awards for Excellence

Fellowships

• 2020 - Fellow: Higher Education Academy

Memberships

• 2018 - ASCILITE: Australasian Society for Computers in Learning in Tertiary Education
• 2017 - National Association of Enabling Educators of Australia
• 2016 - National Association of Enabling Educators of Australia (NAEEA)
• 2011 - DIGRA: Digital Games Research Association

These are the most recent publications associated with this author. To see a detailed profile of all publications stored at JCU, visit ResearchOnline@JCU. Hover over Altmetrics badges to see social impact.

Journal Articles

• Petray T, Doyle T, Howard E, Morgan R and Harrison R (2019) Re-engineering the "leaky pipeline" metaphor: diversifying the pool by teaching STEM "by stealth". International Journal of Gender, Science and Technology, 11 (1). pp. 10-29
• Morgan R (2018) Exploring students' uses of and dispositions towards learning technologies in an Australian enabling course. Student Success, 9 (1). pp. 35-46
• Livingston C, Goldfinch F and Morgan R (2017) Man-eating teddy bears of the scrub: exploring the Australian drop bear urban legend. Etropic: electronic journal of studies in the tropics, 16 (1). pp. 79-95
• Honey T and Morgan R (2013) Technology and community: the changing face of identity. Etropic: electronic journal of studies in the tropics, 12 (1). pp. 64-72
• Morgan R (2013) Death in space and the piracy debate: negotiating ethics and ontology in Entropia Universe. Global Media Journal: Australian Edition, 7 (1). pp. 1-16
• Morgan R (2011) Ethnography on the cyberian frontier. LiNQ, 38. pp. 117-130

Book Chapters

• Morgan R, Meldrum K, Bryan S, Mathiesen B, Yakob N, Esa N and Ziden A (2017) Embedding digital literacies in curricula: Australian and Malaysian experiences. In: Empowering 21st Century Learners Through Holistic and Enterprising Learning: selected papers from Tunku Abdul Rahman University College International Conference 2016. Springer, Singapore, pp. 11-19

Conference Papers

• Morgan R, Bryan S, Meldrum K, Mathiesen B and Hill A (2016) Using an adaptive e-learning curriculum to enhance digital literacy: challenges and opportunities. Proceedings of the Australian Association for Research in Education Conference. In: AARE 2016: Australian Association for Research in Education Conference, 27 November - 1 December 2016, Melbourne, VIC, Australia

Other research outputs

• Morgan R and Moody L (2019) Engagement, resilience, and persistence: facilitating success through integrated curriculum design. [Presented at the 2019 EPHEA/NAEEA Conference]. In: 2019 EPHEA/NAEEA Conference: #EnablingEquity2019, 24-27 November 2019, Wollongong, NSW, Australia

Advisory Accreditation: I can be on your Advisory Panel as a Secondary Advisor.

These Higher Degree Research projects are either current or by students who have completed their studies within the past 5 years at JCU. Linked titles show theses available within ResearchOnline@JCU.

Current

• Promoting student wellbeing: the feasibility of Family Wellbeing soft skills approach in a university access course (PhD , Secondary Advisor)
• Occult politics and the esoteric self in Aboriginal Australia (PhD , Secondary Advisor)