Research Projects
Exploring Student Perspectives on Generative artificial intelligence Integration in Education
Students are increasingly using GenAI, but institutional practices and educator approaches to GenAI integration remain varied and sometimes restrictive. Understanding how students navigate these tensions is critical to informing effective and ethical educational practices.
This project investigates CHS students’ perspectives on the integration of GenAI into their education. Specifically, it will explore: 1) Student GenAI use in learning: This includes their usage patterns, challenges faced, and their views on current institutional policies and practices. and 2) Educator GenAI use in teaching: This covers student perceptions of GenAI-generated educational materials, its role in assessments, and their views on how GenAI should be effectively integrated into teaching and learning practices.
Leveraging AI simulations for allied health education: Pilot study for Psychology
Healthcare students require hands-on experience to develop critical clinical competencies. Recent advances in Large Language Models (LLMs) enable virtual simulations where students can practice their skills in a safe environment. While commercial options exist, they often raise safety concerns and restrict features behind paywalls. IDA (Interactive Dialogue Agent) is a customisable LLM-powered virtual patient simulator with speech capabilities. IDA is specifically designed for healthcare education with built-in safety measures. This project will test IDA with psychology students to determine its effectiveness before expanding to other healthcare disciplines, ultimately providing students college-wide (and university-wide) dynamic and scalable simulations.
Immunomodulatory vaccines in the treatment of peanut allergy (Old ID 27579)
Peanut allergy is the most common cause of food-induced anaphylactic reactions in Australia and is a major burden to our healthcare system. Current clinical practice advice dietary avoidance to prevent fatal anaphylactic responses. We propose the use of an immunomodulatory vaccine to re-write the immune response to peanut antigens, from an allergic to a tolerant phenotype. This study will provide novel insights into rational approaches for manipulating immune memory to food allergens.
GenAI in the classroom: Transforming Assessment Practice
Our project will examine both the student and educator perspectives, aiming for high-impact outcomes:
• Phase 1-2 will assess AI's impact on students’ learning and assessment, informing AI literacy frameworks, assessment reforms and development of OER guides for ethical and critical use of AI.
• Phase 3 will focus on educator’s perspectives, guiding future professional development programs. A resource toolkit for educators will be developed to teach AI literacy to staff and reduce bias in evaluating AI-assisted student work.
• Findings from all phases will be presented at conferences and published in academic journals positioning JCU as a leader in AI-integrated assessment reform.
Embedding digital technology in learning, teaching and assessment in HPE
Assessment practices traditionally utilised used in schools to evaluate physical capabilities of students are often superficial, inaccurate, and potentially biased leading to unreliable reporting (see DinanThompson & Penney, 2015). Furthermore, resultant of academic focus on literacy, numeracy and STEM subjects, what happens in HPE, flies ‘under the radar’, thereby avoiding accountability to be purposeful and meaningful (see Penney, 2020, Penney, in press). This research project aimed to determine how the use of digital technologies could address this identified problem.
Quality and utilisation of primary care among older adults: Driving for holistic healthy ageing in Hong Kong
This research employs the Primary Care Assessment Tool (PCAT) and generate evidence to guide developing a better primary care that provides high perceived service quality, and positive experience to older adults in Hong Kong. The key objectives include:
(a) To assess the current state of experience and perception of primary care among older adults in Hong Kong using the PCAT
(b) To explore the factors that influence the perceived service quality, satisfaction, trust, and revisit intention of primary care among older adults
(c) To identify the gaps and challenges in meeting the needs and expectations of older adults for primary care service
(d) To disseminate the findings of the study to relevant stakeholders, including academics and students, healthcare professionals, elderly care providers, and policy makers
The multi-phase and mixed method research includes online survey and focus group discussions with both older adults who are accessing the current primary care services in Hong Kong and primary care service providers.
Student directed hyflex teaching in Pathways at JCU
This project explores the implementation of a teaching approach known as hyflex at
James Cook University. Hyflex allows students to choose whether to attend classes on-campus or online, or engage and
in self-paced online learning. We will be connecting the classes in Townsville, Cairns and Online for one workshop per
week, to hopefully provide increased flexibility and help people juggle their life responsibilities and studies. This research
project aims to assess the benefits and challenges of introducing hyflex teaching in the "Learning in a Digital
Environment" subject within the Pathways program, ultimately seeking to enhance the overall learning experience for
students
Understanding the ecology and behaviour of platypus in far North Queensland
Our study seeks to understand the ecology and behaviour of genetically isolated and understudied platypuses in far north Queensland. While platypuses were classified as “near threatened” by the IUCN in 2016, most research has been confined to populations in NSW and Victoria. Far north Queensland uniquely hosts platypuses in a predominantly rainforest environment, yet formal region-specific ecological knowledge is lacking. To address this, we aim to 1) assess the presence and relative abundance of platypuses in the Atherton Tablelands, 2) quantify population demographics, and 3) quantify local resource availability and quantify carrying capacity. These efforts will help us establish a baseline understanding of the population’s overall health and longevity and cultivate a more nuanced understanding of the population’s unique characteristics and life history. Developing such knowledge is critical to informing current and future regional management and conservation efforts of this iconic Australian species in a rainforest biome.
This project will work closely with local stake holders and conservation efforts, mainly Dulguburra Yidinji traditional owners and the Yungaburra Landcare Group who share a vested interest in the project’s findings.
Developing a psychology resource library (TAP Grant)
https://www.jcu.edu.au/library/open/textbook-affordability-project-2024-2025/2024-textbook-affordibility-project-tap-grants
Challenges to Positive Mathematical Wellbeing
Concerns have been raised across the university regarding a substantial number of first-year students experiencing mathematics anxiety, low engagement with the subject, and negative feelings toward mathematics. To address these concerns, scholars have introduced a new construct called Mathematical Wellbeing (MWB), which is conceptualised as students’ propensities to feel good and function well in mathematics. Enhancing MWB and fulfilling first-year students’ positive feelings, dispositions and functioning in mathematics is essential. Studies that have investigated predictors of learners’ mathematics performance have focused mostly on cognitive skills and knowledge attainment. Despite the success of this line of work in explaining a sizeable amount of variance in mathematics performance (50–60%), a significant amount of variance remains unexplained (Caia et al., 2018). Explaining this significant amount of variance would require work that address other areas like MWB. There is evidence that learners’ affective and conative domains, and social skills can be cultivated and supported in learning and teaching practices (OECD, 2015; Clarkson et al., 2010). This project seeks to (1) investigate challenges to positive MWB, (2) develop and evaluate an instrument that supports students’ positive MWB, and (3) develop and evaluate support strategies for positive MWB.