Information Literacy Skills > Information handling

You may have heard people use terms like the information age or the knowledge economy. They mean that nowadays information is a very important resource and readily available. Some people would argue that information is more valuable than natural resources.

Information is accessible from different types of source. The main types are paper, people and electronic sources.

The amount of information available is enormous and continually growing in size. So availability does not mean that it is easy for anyone to find the correct information they require to solve a problem or to undertake a task. Indeed, the more information which is available, the more difficult it can be to find what is needed. Think about finding a particular product in a large supermarket or in a corner shop - which is easier?

To find the information we need we must develop information handling skills. A person with good information handling skills is described as being information literate. The Government sees information literacy as one of the five core skills required to operate successfully in today's world. (The remaining four are literacy, numeracy, problem solving and working with others.)

What does it mean to be information literate?

How will information handling skills help you?