What is Content Curation and Why is it Important for Learning?

CONTENT CURATION: IMPORTANCE AND USE

Here are a few thoughts about why students should learn how to curate content. We live in a world of instant information. With the tap of a button, we can read articles, watch videos, listen to podcasts, and engage in rapid-fire conversation about anything.

The traditional gatekeepers are gone, which is great for students. They can create and share their work in ways that were previously unimaginable. But there’s a cost. If we’re not careful, we mistake the speed of consumption for the depth of knowledge. And that’s why we need students to learn the art of curation.

Curators ask thoughtful questions and find resources that are accurate and interesting They Geek Out on the Content, finding the takeaways, make sense out of ideas As this happens, curators organize content into categories or themes.

They make connections between seemingly opposite artists, ideas, or disciplines in ways that make you think, “Man, I never considered that before.” They’re also able to determine trends from multiple sources They add their own unique lens that they share with an audience.

Why Eating Is Necessary for Creating

It’s easy to pit creativity and content consumption against each other. However, both are necessary and complementary to one another. 

We often hear the distinction between creativity and consuming as if these two acts are diametrically opposed. It’s the idea that we should spend our time making rather than taking. But the best creative thinkers are always borrowing ideas and influences from what they consume.

However, creativity doesn’t happen in a vacuum. When you look at makers, they are often critical consumers of the same type of work they create. Chefs love great meals. Musicians listen to music. Architects often visit new cities and tour buildings to find inspiration. Filmmakers watch videos. Engineers often study objects within their world. Computer scientists view other people’s lines of code. 

In other words, creative types consume what they love.

There’s often this ongoing cycle that starts with critical consuming. This consuming is intentional and mindful. Here, you are asking questions and seeking out new ideas. You’re curating information and geeking out on your craft. This leads to inspiration. You might mash-up multiple ideas or take a different angle or a fresh perspective to a problem. Often, you plan and design. But sometimes you play and experiment. This, in turn, leads to creative work. This could involve solving a problem, planning an event, creating art, building a system, or planning an event.

But the more you create, the better you understand your craft, which leads to a deeper ability to consume critically, where they find more inspiration, and the cycle continues. Often, students will go through specific stages from consuming to creating.