1. Always check the policies for generative AI use in your course syllabus or ask your instructor.

2. If you have permission to use generative AI chatbots and tools, cite that you used them in academic papers and projects.

• APA Style - How to Cite ChatGPT
• MLA Style Center - How Do I Cite Generative AI in MLA Style?

3. Never give sensitive, confidential, private, or personal information to an AI chatbot or tool.

• How to Use Generative AI Tools While Still Protecting Your Privacy
• One Tech Tip: Don't Want Chatbots Using Your Conversations for AI Training? Some Let You Opt Out.

1. Consider the goal of your prompt. Are you using the AI tool for brainstorming, to create an outline, or something else?

2. Be specific about what kind of output you would like, whether it is an outline, paragraph, table, type of file, a certain writing style or tone, or for a particular grade level or audience. If needed, provide an example of desired output in the prompt.

3. Give additional commands or ask follow-up questions if needed to refine your prompt and improve it.

4. Create a template for a prompt if you plan to use it often. Save useful prompts to create your own prompt library.

5. Try these strategies to minimize the risk that an AI chatbot will provide information that is misleading or inaccurate.

• Ask direct questions that do not imply a particular viewpoint or answer.
• Use a sequence of simple clear and precise prompts rather than a complex prompt. Break a complicated prompt down into logical discrete steps or multiple prompts.
• Provide context and background information in the prompt, or direct the chatbot to use only the source that you provide to it.
• If available, change the "temperature" or mode settings in favor of more straightforward and factual information.

When generating writing, AI chatbots use mathematical probabilities to generate the next likely word in a string of text based on its training data and how it is prompted. Generative AI tools also can be used to find scholarly sources on the open web, to summarize articles, to create outlines, to brainstorm keywords, to suggest topic ideas, and more. Artificial intelligence can accelerate and transform education, scientific research, and medical discoveries and remove barriers to information access. However, like any powerful tool, using artificial intelligence requires responsible and ethical use in addition to understanding and following the policies of your course instructors.