Writing Support

Artificial Intelligence (AI)

AI Writing Prompts Tips

Important: To get the best and most useful answers, ask clear questions. Leo Lo (2023) suggests following a five-step guide for creating good prompts:

Concision: Make prompts short and clear.

Example: Summarize the main causes of climate change

Logic: Organize your questions or instructions in a clear, logical way so that they are easy to understand and follow. Each part of the prompt should make sense and connect smoothly to the rest.

Example: Explain the relationship between diet and mental health, using examples of both positive and negative impacts

Explicitness: Specify the desired output clearly.

Example: List three benefits of exercise for heart health, citing peer-reviewed studies from the last five years

Adaptiveness: Allowing the prompt to change based on different situations and offering options for various answers.

Example: Provide a summary of renewable energy technologies, then explain their benefits and drawbacks for different regions

Reflectiveness: Continuously evaluate and improve prompts.

Reflectiveness is the most important. ChatGPT remembers the context of your conversation, allowing you to ask follow-up questions, revise prompts, and provide additional information to enhance results.

Example: Based on the previous information, suggest ways to improve public awareness about the benefits of renewable energy. How could your initial answer be expanded?

 

More AI Writing Prompt Tips

  1. To better understand instructions:

“Can you please help me understand the assignment instructions in simpler terms? I'm having trouble figuring out exactly what is being asked of me”

  • For research papers: “What are the main research questions I'm trying to answer? What sources will I use to gather information?"
  • For case studies: “What is the central case or situation I want to analyze? What are the key questions or problems I want to address? How can I structure my case study to effectively present the facts, analysis, and conclusions?”
  • For presentations: "What is the overall goal of my presentation? What key points do I want to emphasize?"
  • For stories: "What is the main conflict or problem in my story? What is the rising action, climax, and falling action?"
  1. To Review the Rules of Grammar:

“Can you review the rules of grammar, sentence structure, and punctuation, and provide examples for each?”

  1. To summarize your paper to ensure your ideas are clearly expressed:

“What are the main points I'm trying to convey in this paper? Can you summarize my key arguments concisely?”

  1. To create self-study materials:

“Can you create self-study materials, like flashcards or quizzes, to help me review the topic of [topic]? I'd like to focus on [specific concepts or skills]”

To find background information on a topic:

“Can you provide me with background information on [topic]? I'd like to learn more about the history, key figures, and current developments. Be sure to support your claims with evidence.”

  1. To help you create an outline:

“I'm writing a [type of writing, e.g., essay, research paper, story]. Can you help me create an outline? I'd like to focus on [main topic or thesis statement and ideas for body paragraph]” 

  1. To review rules for grammar, sentence structure, and punctuation on an assignment: “Please check my writing for any errors in grammar, sentence structure, or punctuation. Are there any areas where I could improve the clarity or conciseness of my writing?”
    Potential follow up: “Please explain each choice in detail: why it is wrong and why your correction is a better format. [insert essay here using quotation marks to mark the beginning and ending of your text]
  2. To help you analyze a piece of literature:

Analyze [famous piece of literature]. What themes, symbols, or motifs can you identify? How do these elements contribute to the overall meaning of the work?

  1. Suggestion search terms:

“Can you suggest relevant search terms for [topic]?”

  1. Using GEN AI as a Dictionary or Translator:

For definitions: "What does [word] mean?"
For translations: "How do you say [word] in [language]?"
For synonyms and antonyms: "What are synonyms or antonyms for [word]?"

 

How Can I Use Generative AI Appropriately in Academic Writing?

Appropriate Uses of Gen AI:

  • Generate questions to explore a topic or guide research
  • Ask for tips and strategies to improve your writing
  • Translate a word if you don't understand what it means
  • Reword a complex passage in plain language to help you understand it
  • Review rules for grammar, sentence structure, and punctuation
  • Review features, components, or structure of specific writing tasks
  • Get an overview of your topic (do not use gen AI output as a source of evidence in your paper)

Use Gen AI with Caution (Ask your Instructor if it is okay!):

  • Brainstorm ideas for a paper
  • Help create an outline for a paper
  • Critique your thesis statement
  • Identify wordiness and repetition in your paper
  • Scan your paper for mistakes in grammar, mechanics, and sentence structure
  • Suggest revisions to improve tone and clarity
  • Translate a paper from your native language to English

Inappropriate Uses of Gen AI:

  • Write your paper
  • Generate a discussion post
  • Complete an exam or quiz
  • Edit your paper
  • Upload copyrighted material

Notes:

  1. Your assignment should reflect your own knowledge and voice, so don't ask gen AI to create content or express ideas for you.
  2. If you're not sure your use of gen AI is ethical, ask your instructor!

Can AI Help Improve my Writing?

Yes! AI tools are now available to help students improve their writing skills to become more effective writers.

AI Tutor Pro, created by Contact North/Nord, is a free tool offering two main functions:

  1. Check your knowledge of a topic.
  2. Grow your knowledge or skills on a topic.

How to use it:

  1. Type https://www.aitutorpro.ca into a web browser and choose whether you want to check or grow your knowledge.
  2. Choose a topic that you want to explore and be as specific as possible. You can also upload your own file or information to enhance your knowledge.
  3. Choose the topic difficulty level (introductory, intermediate, or advanced).
  4. Since AI Tutor Pro supports multiple languages, choose your preferred response language.
  5. Pick the learning level that most suits you: elementary, high school, undergraduate, or professional.
  6. Click the start button to begin. The AI program will now start asking you questions about the topic of your choice.

Limitations:

  1. This AI program only asks questions to encourage exploration and critical thinking, rather than providing direct answers.
  2. Some of the questions may seem repetitive.
  3. When you provide your own content (through uploading or copying and pasting) it only explores that material in a general way and won’t rephrase or explain your input.
  4. The checking your knowledge function doesn’t offer a score or assessment; it just continues asking questions until you decide to stop.

 

Reference

Contact North/Nord. (n.d.). AI Tutor Pro: Your knowledge & skills builder. AI Tutor Pro | Contact North | Contact Nord

A Form to Disclose that You've Used AI for your Assignment

If you decide to use AI in any way for help with your paper or assignment, then please download this form to declare to your instructor that you've used an AI tool. 

Link: