Google has a new course designed to help you improve your AI prompting game.
Titled “Prompting Essentials” and launched in conjunction with online learning platform Coursera, the course includes lessons on writing effective prompts for everyday work tasks, using prompts to accelerate presentation building and data analysis, and prompting generative AI tools to give effective advice. For example, Google advocates a “five step prompting framework” for querying generative AI tools.
In theory, the course takes 10 hours to complete; upon finishing, students will earn a Google Prompting Essentials Certificate.
The coursework is aimed at people relatively new to prompting, not tech professionals interested in using generative AI tools for complex tasks such as coding. In its press release accompanying the course’s launch, Google cites a recent Salesforce study that shows only one in 10 people have any kind of AI skills. Everyone has to start somewhere, in other words.
Once you figure out prompting, of course, you may want to use it for more specialized cases, such as crafting an effective resume and cover letter. In those instances, you’ll often end up chaining together multiple prompts to get what you need, followed by double-checking and proofreading the final output yourself.
Whatever your interest in generative AI, always keep in mind that these tools aren’t foolproof. You’ll always want to fact-check your prompt’s output, especially if you’ve asked the tool a highly technical question. Generative AI’s answers often sound authoritative, but they can miss crucial details.
And if you’re a tech pro who’s mastered the intricacies of generative AI, you can use your position to teach your non-technical colleagues about the best ways to use the technology. As with teaching any other highly technical concept, always use clear language and encourage questions. Highlighting responsible generative AI usage is also critical.
