Lesson 3.8: Information Management



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On this page, you will learn about information management. 


Information overload?

Contrary to many reports of information overload, a recent study published by Northwestern University has found that "the high volume of information available these days seems to make most people feel empowered and enthusiastic". However, they also reported that people feel overwhelmed mainly when they have lower levels of Internet skills, can't navigate search engine results, or filter through social media updates.

~ Shel Holz, Study explodes myth of Internet-based information overload, 2012 

Where do you fit in? Do you feel overwhelmed by the amount of information at your fingertips when you begin a research project at school, or when you attempt to locate information for your own life? There is good reason for that, according to the people over at Epipheo TV.  Watch the video to see what they have to say.


"Our biggest threat to freedom is too much information... we are in a new age of information and it's easy to get lost... What we need are new tools to help create wisdom out of this noise."
~ Announcing Epipheo  TV, 2012

Working on strategic searching skills is one way to deal with information overload and sharpen your digital literacy.


Take a look at the link below for great suggestions on how to improve your online research skills.

Visit Google Inside Search for a list of search techniques that you can start using today!
It's also a vital skill to be able to evaluate the credibility of your online sources. Check out the "Evaluating Web Pages" handout from UC Berkeley Library.

One way to combat information overload is finding and organizing all of that information.


Click on the link to see the full list of resources and articles on the Scoop.it! page for COM 1255. You will be able to find out more about strategic searching, databases, web page evaluation, creative commons, copyright and plagiarism.

Your Turn

  1. Use the materials in the Scoop.it!  page to answer this question for yourself: How does Wikipedia work and what place does it have in research for high school projects?
  2. Take one of the web evaluation resources from Scoop.it! Use it to assess the quality and credibility of websites as you do research for a future high school project.
  3. Create your own digital space where you put the articles and resources that you find most helpful for research, as well as things you'd like to share with others. You can use Scoop.it! or choose another from this list . As you go through the information on the COM 1255 Scoop.it!  page, think about which ones will be most helpful to you in the future.