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Information Literacy and Communication

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When you start working on class assignments, is the information you need already in your head? When you sit down to write, do the words flow easily onto the page? When you deliver a presentation, do you calmly stroll up to the front of the room and then wow the crowd? These scenarios might happen occasionally (and isn’t it great when they do!). For most people, though, finding information and communicating it through writing and speaking are often difficult. Maybe you have trouble locating useful sources for a paper and clarifying your thoughts in writing, or you suffer from “stage fright” when giving presentations. If so, here’s good news: Although finding information and communicating it through writing and speaking take work, you can build these skills. Here’s even better news: College is the perfect place to do it.

As a college student, you’ll use these skills all the time. For example, you’ll probably have to write papers with references to outside sources and give class presentations. You’ll also use these skills in your job. Police officers, for instance, need to write reports and speak with authority during traffic stops and daily briefings. Civil engineers must record the results of structural tests or explain the design needs of a new bridge. Logistics managers for consumer-products companies have to know which products customers have ordered and which products are available, and then get customers those products on time. Many careers involve large amounts of information gathering, writing, and speaking (for example, criminal attorney, sales representative, or reporter). But to excel in almost every job, you’ll need to communicate effectively through one or both of these means.

The ability to find, evaluate, and communicate information is called information literacy. In this chapter we start by focusing on the first two components of information literacy: locating information and evaluating its quality. Then we move to its third component: communicating that information through writing and speaking. We explain how to navigate the writing process, avoid plagiarism, and give strong class presentations. Finally, we consider how you can use all these skills in your career. These concepts are closely linked to critical thinking, so throughout this chapter we note how you can use your higher-level thinking skills to track down information and communicate your ideas.