In 2013 I posed this question — ask what value you can add — when it comes to sharing information and knowledge. Ten years later and what has increased is the noise, especially misinformation, disinformation, and propaganda. The release of tools like generative pre-trained transformers (GPT) will only increase the amount of noise online. It is becoming even more important to add value before we share information, especially confirming that the information is valid and reliable. As more machines create ‘answers’ to our questions, we should focus on adding human value.
Jacqueline Bates asks, “how can educators find their way through the sea of new technologies like Artificial Intelligence?”. She recommends using the Feynman Technique, an excellent way of making sense of something and then adding value by explaining it.
Step 1: Choose a concept or topic to explain.
Step 2: Pretend you are teaching the concept or topic to a child.
Step 3: Write down a simple explanation of the concept or topic.
Step 4: Review and revise the explanation until you understand it completely.
—Wayfinding New Technology for Educators
Adding value to information is one way of helping make our networks smarter and able to make better-informed decisions. The fourteen methods I described in 2013 are still valid today. Adding value is one of the topics in the PKM workshop, building on intentionality, media literacy, and understanding fake news. If the use of tools like GPT become widespread then instead of answers to all our questions, we may only get answers without real questions behind them — auto-tuning work.
The next time we share something online, let’s ask — “What value am I adding?”
