Foundations of Prompt Engineering

This unit introduces core concepts of AI, machine learning, and prompt engineering and provides hands-on practice crafting, testing, and refining prompts across platforms. Learners will also explore accessibility, bias, privacy, and ethical considerations to prepare for advanced optimization and automation techniques in later units.

Learning Objectives

• Analyze the differences among artificial intelligence, machine learning, and deep learning and explain their implications for prompt design and expected model behavior
• Apply platform-specific input methods and prompt components to construct at least three functional prompts (instructional, creative, and coding) that demonstrate correct formatting and data input
• Evaluate prompt effectiveness using criteria of context, clarity, conciseness, and relevance; perform iterative testing (including A/B comparisons) and refine prompts to improve measurable output quality
• Apply ethical guidelines and privacy-best practices to identify potential bias and data-privacy risks in prompts and implement at least two mitigation strategies when designing prompts