Catalysing connection for Generation Z students through technology mediated epistemic design

Generation Z rely on technology-mediated information and media literacies to cultivate social connections and pursue learning aligned with their values and ethics Based on the evaluation of a large‑scale leadership education initiative at the University of Sydney Business School, this papers foregrounds connection as the central pedagogical condition for Generation Z learners. Through epistemic ecosystem model, technology acts as a mediator for structured personalisation, narrative activity, and peer sense‑making. The paper explores the discursive pedagogical structures that enabled connection for learning and supported the learning capabilities of Generation Z. Mixed learning architectures such as interactive stories, multimedia artefacts, and collaborative platforms, enabled students to navigate liminal, uncertain spaces with agency, constructing rhizomatic networks of emotional, epistemic, and experiential engagement. The paper argues that learner development emerged as an adaptive, socially constructed practice shaped through storytelling and navigation across complex learning ecologies in post‑crisis, networked contexts.