Generative AI: Prompt Engineering Basics

Description

🎯 Course Title:

Generative AI: Prompt Engineering Basics

Course Duration:

4 to 6 weeks (can be adapted for workshops or bootcamps)

Target Audience:

Beginners to intermediate learners (non-programmers welcome)

Prerequisites:

• Basic digital literacy

• Familiarity with ChatGPT or similar AI tools (optional but helpful)

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🗂️ Course Modules Overview

Module 1: Introduction to Generative AI

• What is Generative AI?

• Overview of LLMs (Large Language Models)

• Use cases: text generation, summarization, translation, code generation, image generation

• Tools overview: ChatGPT, Claude, Gemini, DALL·E, Midjourney, etc.

Hands-On: Try simple prompts in ChatGPT or Claude

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Module 2: Understanding Prompt Engineering

• What is a prompt?

• Types of prompting:

  • Zero-shot

  • One-shot

  • Few-shot

• Prompt structure and formatting

• Importance of clarity and instruction

Activity: Craft zero-shot and few-shot prompts for rewriting text

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Module 3: Prompt Design Techniques

• Role prompting (e.g. “Act as a…”)

• Chain of Thought prompting

• Instructional prompting (imperative tone, constraints)

• Controlling tone, style, format

• Avoiding hallucinations

Lab: Rewrite prompts to improve output quality

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Module 4: Image Prompting Basics

• Introduction to text-to-image tools (DALL·E, Midjourney)

• Prompt structure for visual generation

• Styling keywords (e.g. “hyperrealistic”, “minimalist”, “cyberpunk”)

• Parameters and modifiers (e.g. resolution, aspect ratio)

Hands-On: Generate an image using DALL·E or Midjourney

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Module 5: Advanced Prompting Techniques

• Prompt chaining & context preservation

• Dynamic prompt injection

• Prompt templates for automation

• API-based prompt engineering (e.g. OpenAI API)

Project Idea: Build a prompt-driven mini-app (e.g. blog post generator)

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Module 6: Ethics, Safety & Limitations

• AI bias and fairness

• Misuse of generative AI (deepfakes, misinformation)

• Safety filters and guardrails

• Prompting for trustworthy outputs

Discussion: Review real-world examples of responsible vs irresponsible prompting

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🧪 Assessment & Projects

• Weekly prompt challenges

• Final Project: Create a prompt toolkit (for writing, design, coding, etc.)

• Peer reviews and reflection logs