Information Architects

With kids from four different countries working in twenty different wiki pages, the end result looks something like your typical teenager's bedroom; filled to the brim, a mess, and in vast need of some intense clean up time.

We looked through these wiki pages in class as a group and talked about the idea of "information architecture and information engineering." We discussed what architects do and what engineers do; boiling these jobs down in a simplistic way to making something that is well designed, that has components of beauty, and the importance of ease of use.

We then went to work on our wiki pages. Each student was assigned a random page as I felt it was important that they did not work on a page that was their own. I did not want them to feel ownership for what was previously put on the page, feeling that the way the information was already presented was the best way possible. I wanted "fresh eyes" on the pages. As a class we talked about issues such as headers, titles, and sub - titles. We talked about fonts, underlining text, colour, and categorizing information.

Then, like surgeons, they went to work re - formatting pages, editing, adding and deleting information. I also encouraged students to re - organize and re - categorize information, looking for patterns in what was written. While some students struggled, and some pages are in need of further surgery, over all, the class was successful. Students made many of these pages much easier to use and easier to scan through.

While it may seem like a minor issue, this concept of how information is designed to be used by its audience can actually be quite important. How often do badly designed and created manuals get pulled out of their boxes? How much time will you spend with information that is not formatted properly to be read online (which is very different from reading offline)? These issues add up over time, making a resource useful or rendering it virtually impossible to use.

Another tool in information management skills that kids need; effective information presentation skills.

technorati tags:pbwiki, information, management, architect

Comments

[Mr. Chase]

Clarence,

I know what you're talking about. I started working with my first wiki last week to help our district with a professional development process. I've known about and contributed to wikis for quite a while, but this is the first wiki for which I was acting as architect.
What struck me first was the need to separate information. What would be fine as a 3-page document in MS Word needed to be broken into separate pages on the wiki in order to keep the information manageable. I think the result is strong and am now left waiting for district counterparts to begin editing. (http://ngt.wikispaces.com)

[davin]

Hi, I just happened across this page from a Google news service I use for the phrase "information architecture." Which is to say, I'm sort of an outsider to your discussions here.

However, I love that you ran that activity on information design with your students. That's awesome.

I cannot agree more–presenting information is a crucial life skill, especially as the Internet continues to shift how we share and consume information. We're tempted by the quick publishing ability and our reliance on quick consumption of information, but that should not lead to careless presentation of information.

A few days ago J Nielsen posted a write-up on life-long computer skills that seems related.
http://www.useit.com/alertbox/computer-skills.html

[Clarence Fisher]

Davin;

You are of course welcome in these discussions and thanks for the link. It looks like a concise, simple, and valuable article.

[Kim Cofino]

I just looked through the wiki - wow, what a difference! The project ideas are much more manageable and the focus points are clear and easy to find. Please say a huge thank you to your students for organizing our space!

I'm seeing our students struggle with the differences between writing online and offline. They want to utilize every English skill they are learning in class, but don't realize that reading and writing online is different than reading and writing offline.

I think one of your key points is: "looking for patterns in what was written." As Mr. Chase says above, online writing needs to be broken down in to smaller chunks and more clearly organized than traditional writing. Does this then become a separate skill in English classes?

[Jeff Utecht]

Haven't commented in a while....great stuff as usual!