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One of the catchphrases to emerge in recent years refers to an 'information explosion'. This represents much more than a catchy cliche, for it is firmly rooted in reality. It underscores the dominance that information has across the spectrum of work and life more generally. Much of this information is contained in oral communication and it is conventional to think of information as being contained in text. But information is rendered also in statistical, graphical, pictorial and tabular forms, in spreadsheets, databases, diagrams, formulae and equations, and ledgers. Material, whether it is spoken, written or visual, can become information when a person recognises it as relevant to his or her work purposes. In this definition such things as the names and telephone numbers of colleagues or neighbours can assume the status of information. Even the particular interests of colleagues and friends could provide a relevant information base for an adult who wants to organise an after-work, volunteer or community activity. Similarly the physical features and interactions of worksites become information for people who have a disability and for their co-workers.
Growth in the capacities to store and access information, to collect and present it in many and varied forms, and to apply to it techniques of analysis and research has led to work practices and organisational structures which now depend on these capacities. For example, many organisations, including some 'leading edge' organisations, use a structure based on a network of small units, perhaps in separate locations. This structure must be underpinned by the effective use and management of information. Further, as technology becomes more sophisticated greater proportions of the total work effort are being devoted to generating, managing and using information. Similarly, learning in further and higher education requires the ability to sift, select and present information as a critical part of the educative process. The processes for gathering and managing information are now more important to effective participation in work and education than at any time in history.
Collecting, Analysing and Organising Information focuses on the capacity to locate information, sift and sort information in order to select what is required and present it in a useful way, and evaluate both the information itself and the sources and methods used to obtain it. It is about the processes by which information is managed. Of particular importance in this Key Competency is responsiveness to the nature and expectations of those who might receive the information, those who might be affected by the information and the purposes to which the information might be put. It includes the notion of social, cultural and ethical responsibility in the use and management of information. At lower levels this might mean clarifying the nature and expectations of the audience and the purpose of the information, or fulfilling responsibilities for maintaining the integrity of the information source. It might involve following guidelines for confidentiality, privacy, a Freedom of Information Act, or other guidelines which provide the format, routines and protocols specific to the organisation. At higher levels it might mean reflecting upon and evaluating the processes by which information is collected, analysed and organised or identifying and using principles for the responsible use and management of information.
Another of the important ideas in this Key Competency is the application of the techniques of information access and retrieval. This can be as straightforward as accessing a library book which is known to contain the factual information sought, asking someone for directions or taking data from a graph. But it can also be more complex, perhaps drawing on the investigative skills of searching and researching.
In the simplest sense, the analysis and organisation of information amounts to extracting factual information and organising it into a predetermined format. In the more complex sense the variety of theoretical approaches to some information gives rise to many different themes, categories and ways of viewing the information. This may require the creation of categories or organising structures which are unique to that information but which provide a strong basis for public presentation.
The Key Competency also includes the evaluation of information. At lower levels this might mean checking that factual information is as complete as can be expected, has been correctly allocated to categories, and is free of error. At higher levels it might mean establishing or clarifying criteria for judging the validity, quality, and salience of information, and using those criteria judiciously in the process of collecting, analysing and organising information.
In summary, Collecting, Analysing and Organising Information involves:
- responsiveness to purposes of the information, the nature of the sources and the audience;
- application of access and retrieval techniques and principles;
- analysis and organisation of information;
- evaluation of quality and validity of information.
At Performance Level l, the primary focus of Collecting, Analysing and Organising Information is the retrieval and reporting of specific information. The applications at this level require accuracy, clarity and adherence to specific guidelines. Performance Level 2 moves beyond this to management of the information within a broader work process. It includes the selection of management techniques and the identification of relevant sources of information. At Performance Level 3 the emphasis broadens again to the establishment and application of principles that underpin information retrieval and organisation. The applications at this level require searching and selecting information from sources in which it may be embedded within other material, and from sources which may not be immediate and obvious. It also requires the capacity to create ways of organising information for new situations.
PERFORMANCE LEVEL 1
At this level a person:
- follows existing guidelines for the collection, analysis and organisation of information; and
- accesses and records information from given sources; and
- organises information into predetermined categories; and
- checks information for completeness and accuracy.
PERFORMANCE LEVEL 2
At this level a person:
- clarifies the needs of the audience and the purposes of the information; and
- accesses and records information from a variety of sources; and
- selects categories or structures by which to organise information; and
- assesses information for relevance, accuracy and completeness.
PERFORMANCE LEVEL 3
At this level a person:
- defines the needs of the audiences and the purposes of the information; and
- critically investigates sources to identify and distil relevant information; and
- identifies within information the main organising categories and structures; and
- evaluates the quality and validity of information.
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