To generate content a generative AI tool, you need to write a prompt. A prompt is the set of instructions you enter into a generative AI tool in order to make it output text, code, an image, or some other kind of content. You can practice writing prompts and follow-up requests that will help you use a tool more effectively.
How to Write Good Prompts
Prompts may be short or long, consisting of a few words, a paragraph, or more. If you do not write a good prompt, you will not receive the output you want.
When working with an AI text generator like ChatGPT, it helps to have some basic information about the subject you are inquiring about. You should approach the tool as if you are having an intelligent conversation with it. Be prepared to revise and try again if you don’t get the information you need, and use follow-up questions to ask for clarification.
Follow these guidelines to write good prompts:
1. Be specific and detailed about you what you need (e.g., a presentation topic, a meal plan, a study guide), providing enough context (e.g., description of the situation) so that the tool can understand what you want.
- Example: I need to develop a lesson for teaching math skills to middle school students. What are some successful pedagogical approaches for teaching math?
2. Specify the outcomes you want from the tool (e.g., stages in a process, a list of features, a 300-word summary, or a list of pros and cons).
- Example: At the end of my lesson I’d like to gauge whether middle school students have successfully learned the math skills that I’m teaching. Can you provide a description of different types of assessment methods that I can use for teaching math?
3. Evaluate the output and improve the prompt by asking for clarification or elaboration of different elements of the response.
- Example: Can you expand on the use of technology in fostering math skills, especially in regard to the use of apps for teaching math?
- Example: Could you discuss the concept of self-assessments a bit more in relation to math skills? What would students need to do to enable an accurate assessment of their abilities?
Finally, make sure to verify any information you get from the tool by confirming it in authoritative sources, like those you find through the library website. AI text generators work by predicting words found in common patterns of textual data, which may or may not represent the truth.
