Educator completed OpenAI and Common Sense Media's Complimentary Instructional Program for Educators
The tech giants, OpenAI and Common Sense Media, have teamed up to offer a free AI course designed specifically for K-12 educators. The course, which takes less than an hour to complete, aims to help users get more out of chat models like ChatGPT by teaching them how to write effective AI prompts.
The course is built around the CRE Framework, a detailed structure for crafting clear and precise prompts that guide AI tools to generate relevant and reliable responses. The acronym CRE stands for Context, Role, and Example.
Context is the background information or setting that frames the prompt. This includes any necessary details about the topic, audience, or situation to help the AI understand the scenario. For instance, a prompt might ask the AI to imagine it teaches in a high school that has a specific demographic.
Role specifies the perspective or persona that the AI should adopt when responding. This helps shape the tone and the depth of the response. For example, instructing the AI to answer as a teacher, expert, historian, or another relevant role helps ensure the response is tailored to the prompt's requirements.
Example includes an example of the desired output or specifies the format, style, or level of detail expected. This guides the AI in producing answers that meet specific criteria like length, complexity, or tone. For example, a prompt might ask the AI to write a 15-minute biology lesson plan.
By following the CRE structure, educators can produce well-crafted AI prompts that are actionable, contextualized, and role-specific. This enhances the effectiveness and appropriateness of AI-generated content for classroom use, aligning with best practices that encourage specificity, clarity, and targeted guidance in prompt creation.
The course also addresses potential problems with bias and privacy in AI use, advising never to share personally identifiable information about students with ChatGPT. It offers a strong overview of teaching with AI, with a focus on generating effective prompts in an education setting.
Additionally, the course provides a PDF file filled with prompt templates for educators to create their own context-specific prompts. It incorporates short videos, readings, quizzes, and interactive activities utilizing AI.
However, the course could benefit from more detailed guidance on how to use the CRE Framework for prompt writing. Some versions of ChatGPT input data for future training, so it's crucial to provide clear instructions on the role the AI should play while generating text. The course does not offer additional feedback when it comes to prompt writing, which might be a point for improvement.
Overall, the OpenAI and Common Sense Media's AI course for teachers offers valuable insights into crafting effective AI prompts, helping educators make the most of AI tools in their classrooms. By embracing the CRE Framework, teachers can foster critical thinking and responsible AI use, ensuring a more enriching and productive learning environment.
- Students during an online-education course, aimed at K-12 educators, learn the CRE Framework for writing effective AI prompts to improve the relevance and reliability of AI responses.
 - The course provides a detailed structure for teachers to create clear and precise prompts, using Context, Role, and Example, enhancing the accuracy and appropriateness of AI-generated content within an education setting.
 - Teachers are offered prompt templates, short videos, readings, quizzes, and interactive activities utilizing AI in the PDF file to create context-specific prompts and understand how to use technology for education-and-self-development.
 - The course addresses potential issues with bias and privacy in AI use, advising educators never to share personally identifiable information about students with chat models like ChatGPT, promoting responsible AI usage in a learning environment.
 - The AI course could be more beneficial with additional guidance on using the CRE Framework for prompt writing, as well as feedback on prompt creation, helping educators maximize chat model efficiency and productivity.