Thinking about Information

An incredibly interesting way to begin ETL401, discussions around the nature of information. More precisely, how do we define ‘information’ and how does it in turn impact the way in which we communicate, learn and use information?

Personally, I often use the word ‘information’. In my role I will use it when teaching, when fulfilling my library management duties, in conversation with my colleagues. I hadn’t really thought about what it actually means, what it actually entails.

I was originally fascinated by the idea that there is so much discourse around what constitutes information. The semantic definition of information is probably more closely aligned to my use of the word, that information is a message, it has meaning. I had never thought of information as a process (classical). Teacher Librarians in their roles as Curriculum leaders (ASLA, 2014) are to “promote the use of the information process as a framework for the development of information skills and as  the basis for systematic monitoring of students’ development as information users”. This I believe sits well with the definition of information on a ‘data-knowledge continuum’, recognising information as a process, involving a hierarchy of steps (AEW, 2008). I could see then how my role as a Teacher Librarian becomes instrumental in teaching students to see the raw data, collect the significant data, understanding the importance of the data/facts, developing this data/facts as a bank of knowledge for future reference and finally the ability to make solid judgements based on this knowledge as outlined by AEW (2008) in “The Information Hierarchy”.

Reflecting on how the behaviour of information affects how we communicate, learn and use information I think it is even more relevant given our ever changing digital environment to consider ‘overload’. Information, whether we describe it within a semantic, classic or the data-knowledge contiuum framework needs to be seen as a rapidly growing and in many ways uncontrollable commodity. The raw data itself is being diluted by constant injections of irrelevant, biased and incorrect data, through social media and advertising for example. This makes the process of ‘sorting’ then understanding and making judgment that much harder. Our job as Teacher Librarians in a digital world then increasingly involves guiding our students as astute data savvy individuals who can make sense of this overwhelm, to advise and support them to take control of the raw data, to equip them with the tools to successfully scale the hierarchy and reach the top, “to make good judgements and wise decisions” (AEW, 2008)manage, sift, select and survive.

References

AEW. (2008). Community of practice: Part B. The Information Hierarchy. [ slideshare ]

Australian School Library Association (2014) What is a teacher librarian? Retrieved from https://asla.org.au/what-is-a-teacher-librarian