AI Prompt Engineering - Handout - Strategies and Practice

Nov 2, 2026

Uploaded by adawds

AI platforms can support the writing process, but they must be used as supplementary tools rather than to generate complete papers from scratch. This handout explains appropriate use of AI across stages from planning to drafting and emphasizes respecting instructor policies. It introduces large language models and defines prompt engineering as the design of clear, contextual, and iteratively refined prompts, including response-length control and prompt chaining. A practice activity guides learners in submitting questions and follow-ups to obtain more precise information.

LanguageEnglish

CategoryTechnology

FormatPDF

Pages5

Reading Time13 min

AccessFree to download

What is AI?

Examples of AI Applications

Large Language Models (LLMs)

What is Prompt Engineering?

Five Strategies for Effective Prompt Engineering

1. Be Clear and Specific

2. Provide Contextual Information

3. Limit Response Length

4. Iterate and Refine

5. Chain Your Prompts

Example of Prompt Engineering (with ChatGPT)

Activity: Practice Prompt Engineering

References

AI Prompt Engineering AI platforms can be useful when used as supplementary tools during the writing process. This handout will cover when and how AI can be incorporated into different stages ofthe writing process, from planning to drafting, with a focus on strategies for engineering prompts and getting effective results. Note that AI should never be used to generate writing from scratch; that's not what learning writing skills is about. It is never acceptable to have an AI chatbot write your papers for you. Instead, we will look at ways that AI can help you enhance your writing process, while making sure that you're still doing the bulk of the work. While this handout can help you learn more about applications of AI in writing, it's important to remember that faculty will have different policies about the use of AI in the classroom. If you are ever in doubt about acceptable applications of AI tools in a specific class, the best thing to do is ask your instructor. What is AI? Broadly defined, Artificial Intelligence (AI) is a branch of computer science research focused on technology that enables machines to utilize learning, intelligence, and environmental context. Some examples of current AI applications are provided below, but be aware that there are many more, and they can (and will) change over time. Examples of AI Applications ● Web Search Engines ○ Google, Yahoo, DuckDuckGo ● Algorithms ○ YouTube, Instagram, TikTok ● Large Language Models (LLMs) ○ ChatGPT, ClaudeAI, Gemini Large Language Models (LLMs) This handout will focus on the Large Language Model (LLM) application of AI. LLMs are Natural Language Processing (NLP) models that are trained on large amounts of text data and complete tasks like language generation. ChatGPT was one of the earliest LLMs available widely for public usage. What is Prompt Engineering? Prompt engineering involves designing effective prompts to elicit desired responses from AI. In this context, a prompt is the text that we input into language-generating AI platforms, like ChatGPT, to generate responses that are relevant, coherent, informational, and useful. The more that you engage repeatedly with the AI—by doing things like submitting follow-up prompts—the more effective your responses will be. Five Strategies for Effective Prompt Engineering 1. Be Clear and Specific It's essential to make your prompts as clear and specific as possible. Ambiguous or vague prompts can lead to irrelevant or confusing AI-generated responses. Ensure that your prompts explicitly state the desired outcome or response format. 2. Provide Contextual Information Providing context in your prompts is crucial for the generation of accurate responses. By including relevant background information or defining specific terms, you can guide the AI model toward a more informed and appropriate response. 3. Limit Response Length When designing a prompt, consider specifying the desired length of the response. For instance, if you require a brief, concise answer, you may include a phrase like “in one sentence” or “summarize in 100 words.” This step ensures that the AI model generates responses that meet your expectations. 4. Iterate and Refine The process of prompt engineering often involves trial and error. Test your prompts with the AI system and observe the responses. If the generated output is not satisfactory, refine your prompt by making it more specific, adding context, or adjusting the response length. You will likely have to iterate on your initial prompts in the AI system. 5. Chain Your Prompts Sometimes a single prompt may not be enough to obtain the desired response. In such cases, you can use “prompt chaining,” which involves breaking down a complex prompt into simpler, interconnected prompts. This strategy helps guide the AI model step-by-step toward the desired outcome. Example of Prompt Engineering (with ChatGPT) 1. The Beginning: We prompt ChatGPT to “list

FAQs

How should AI be used during the writing process?

Use AI as a supplementary tool across stages such as planning and drafting. Avoid letting AI generate an entire paper from scratch and ensure you do the main work yourself.

What is prompt engineering?

Prompt engineering is designing effective prompts to elicit desired responses from AI. It includes writing input text that guides the model toward relevant, coherent, informational, and useful output.

What are the five strategies for effective prompt engineering?

Be clear and specific, provide contextual information, limit response length, iterate and refine your prompts, and chain prompts by breaking a complex request into simpler interconnected steps.

Nov 2, 2026

Uploaded by adawds