Chapter 11

Documenting information and creating

Chapter 1: Navigating Information Literacy 1

Learning outcomes
After reading this chapter, you should be able to answer the following questions:

• Where will I have opportunities to document information and create new knowledge?

• How do I understand the immediate and broader contexts in which I need to document
information and create new knowledge?

• What are the generic issues to consider when documenting information and creating
new knowledge?

• What do I need to know about creating new academic knowledge?

• Where will I document academic information?

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Learning outcomes (cont.)
• How will I document academic information?

• Where in my workplace and everyday life will I document information and

create new knowledge?

• How do the skills for documenting information and creating new knowledge
in academic life align with what I might expect in my workplace and
everyday life?

• How do I document information in various workplace contexts?

• How do I document information in various everyday life contexts?

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Creating, documenting and sharing information

• Depends on:

o Purpose

o Audience

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Chapter 11: Documenting information and creating

Formal and informal documentation

• Examples of formal documentation:

o minutes of meetings,
o academic research reports,
o writing a CV,
o police report on a car accident

• Examples of informal documentation:

o text messages on your mobile phone,
o commenting on other people’s Facebook and Instagram posts

Chapter 11: Documenting information and creating

General issues to consider when documenting
information
• Problem: The problem or challenge you need to address.

• Purpose: The reason why you need to document the information.

• Knowledge gap: The gap in your knowledge for which you need to get
additional information.

• Audience: The person or people you are writing for.

• Type of document: The type of documentation to be shared with others.

• Style and formality: These must suit the type of document.

• Document length: Restrictions on length, number of pages and word

count.

• Structure: The way the document should be structured and the structural
components it should include

Chapter 11: Documenting information and creating 6

Soap example: recipe
Strawberries and Cream Bar Soap

Ingredients
190 g avocado oil 380 g palm oil
190 g castor oil 95 g sweet almond oil
475 g coconut oil 190 g canola oil
95 g Shea butter 627 g distilled water
285 g olive oil 265.7 g sodium hydroxide
60 g strawberries and cream fragrance oil

Method
Dissolve lye in water in a lye-safe container. Set aside and let it cool to room temperature.
Mix avocado oil, castor oil, olive oil, sweet almond oil and canola oil together in a separate bowl.
Melt coconut oil, shea butter and palm oil together in a third bowl.
Mix the soft oils and melted hard oils together. Add the lye solution slowly. Mix with a stick blender
until emulsion is reached. Add the fragrance oil. Pour into a 2-kg loaf mould.
Let it stand for 24-48 hours before unmoulding. Cut into bars of 2.5 cm thick.

Note:
Let it cure for six weeks in a cool, dry place before use.

Chapter 11: Documenting information and creating 7

Soap example: product label

Bubbly Soap Company

Weight: 100 g
Date manufactured:
Best before date:
www.bubblysoapexample.com
Customer care: 081 555 78906
Ingredients: Aqua, Cocos Nucifera (Coconut) Oil, Elaeis Guineensis (Palm) Oil, Olea
Europaea (Olive) Fruit Oil, Sodium Hydroxide, Persea Gratissima (Avocado) Oil, Brassica
Campestris Seed Oil, Ricinus Communis Seed Oil, Butyrospermum Parkii (Shea) Butter,
Prunus Amygdalus Dulcis (Sweet Almond) Oil, Parfum

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Chapter 11: Documenting information and creating 8

Process of writing academic assignments

• Analyse the topic.

• Do the required reading.

• Identify aspects to discuss.

• Search the literature

• Take notes.

• Write the assignment.

• Submit the assignment.

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Chapter 11: Documenting information and creating 9

Analyse the topic

One of the most important steps:

• Look closely at the different words in the assignment topic –

different words will change the focus of the assignment.

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Chapter 11: Documenting information and creating 10

 Do the required reading

• Prescribed reading

• Recommended reading

Chapter 11: Documenting information and creating 11

Identify aspects to discuss

• Tools:
o Lists
o Mind maps

• Reveal what you already know versus what you need to find out.

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Chapter 11: Documenting information and creating 12

 Search the literature

• Step 1: What aspects do you need information on?

• Step 2: Which search terms do you need to use and how do you need to
combine them?

• Step 3: What types of information resources would be helpful?

• Step 4: Which information resources do you have access to?

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Chapter 11: Documenting information and creating 13

Tips: How to read the literature

• Tip 1: Read the information sources in their order of their relevance

to the topic.

• Tip 2: It is not always necessary to read the whole text.

• Tip 3: Read as much and as widely as you can.

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Chapter 11: Documenting information and creating 14

 Take notes

• There are many different ways to take notes.

• Important note-taking guidelines

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Chapter 11: Documenting information and creating 15

 Process for taking notes

• Step 1: Scan the reading.

• Step 2: Become familiar with the concepts.

• Step 3: Write a draft outline.

• Step 4: Study the information sources.

• Step 5: Reflect on your work.

• Step 6: Refine and adapt your outline and notes.

• Step 7: Recheck the literature, if necessary.

Chapter 11: Documenting information and creating 16

 Write the assignment

• Components of the assignment

• Technical specifications of the assignment

Chapter 11: Documenting information and creating 17

 Write the assignment

Guidelines to help the writing process:

• Make sure you have enough time.

• Write concisely and logically.

• Write correctly.

• Edit your writing.

• Use and develop your information literacy skills.

Chapter 11: Documenting information and creating 18

 Submit the assignment

• Create a checklist.

• Some assignments might have unique requirements.

Chapter 11: Documenting information and creating 19

 Summary

In this chapter, you have learned:

• How to write assignments and research reports.

• How to analyse a topic, do the required reading, identify aspects to

discuss, search the literature, take notes, and write the assignment.

• How to meet the technical requirements of assignments.

Chapter 11: Documenting information and creating 20