Finding Things Out (Data Handling)

People have always needed access to information. And schools have traditionally taught children how to search for information in books, card index files and other paper-based systems. The invention of computers has provided us with machines which can sort, search and present very large quantities of information with great ease and they have become so essential to modern society that the national curricula in all countries contain a set of information handling skills which all pupils must acquire. The following is from the English National Curriculum but is equally valid in all countries.

In the early years ICT is used for sorting and clasifying activities. Dressing Teddy using the 'My World' program, counting shoes with 'PicturePoint' and using a branching tree in 'FlexiTree' are all good activities which build comparative skills in readiness for data handling activities from about age 7 onwards. But young children can also explore suitable CD-ROMs and also use appropriate websites to gain experience of large information sources.

From that point on 'Finding things out’ involves the ability to find the answers to questions using a variety of skills and techniques. There are three possible sources for this type of activity:

  • Information stored in databases
  • Information stored on high capacity storage devices such as CD-ROM, DVD
  • Information stored on the Internet.

Databases
Using a database is in many ways the most difficult of these. Databases hold information is a very structured way so interrogating them requires the development of both understanding and skills. But the benefits they can bestow are considerable. Without databases, information would be static. Using them, we can interrogate and analyse information, we can look for patterns and trends, and we can solve problems in ways that information stored on CD-ROM or the Internet cannot do.

The exception might appear to be dynamic information held on the Internet, such as train timetables which can be accessed and searched. But the truth is that these are databases being accessed by Internet pages. It is the database which provides the value, the Internet is merely the vehicle for transporting it.

CD-ROM and DVD
Searching for information on CD-ROM, DVD seems to be the simplest because there is a close analogy with the paper based equivalent – the encyclopaedia. But searching electronic text is different from searching in a book. Traditional methods such as using the contents page and index and knowing alphabetical and numeric order do not help. In their place new skills such as key words and Boolean logic are needed.

The Internet
Like CD-ROM and DVD, the Internet holds a vast quantity of information. Searching it requires the same skills as with CD-ROM and DVD but with the additional problems of information overload and the need to check accuracy, plausibility and bias. A search on the Internet can yield many thousands of results and identifying that which will be useful is a real challenge. In addition, anyone can contribute to the Internet so the authenticity and bias of information must be constantly addressed.

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