Skip to Main Content

Generative Artificial Intelligence

This guide provides resources and guidance on generative AI at Hood College.

How to Use Generative Artificial Intelligence

Put simply, generative artificial intelligence is a tool, the use of which is depended on the intended outcome. For academic course work, it depends on the assignment and the guidance of the instructor. It can be a valuable tool when used ethically and effectively as a resource rather than as a replacement for critical thinking and academic skills. Once GAI's capabilities and limitations are understood, it is possible to harness its power responsibly. Before using GAI as a tool, make sure you know how to use it effectively, efficiently and ethically.

When using GAI, students should: 

  • verify the accuracy of the information and cross-reference it with reliable resources to ensure accuracy and credibility.
  • use it to generate ideas, insights, and perspectives, and before incorporating into a paper should independently evaluate and analyze the content. GAI should never do all the work.
  • respect intellectual property rights by acknowledging its role as a tool rather than an author
  • appropriately attribute any direct quotes or paraphrased content generated by GAI, adhering to academic integrity policies.
  • refrain from inputting sensitive or confidential information into any interaction with GAI to be mindful of privacy concerns, and; 
  • most importantly, acknowledge the use of GAI and review any guidelines provided in the course syllabus or additional instructions from the instructor on its use before using GAI.

Best Uses of Generative AI

  • to gain entry level knowledge on a topic
  • as a brainstorming session/tool
  • to create basic outlines or tables on text you have input into a chatbot
  • as an exploration of the new technology
  • to ask for a list of synonyms or similar concepts, phrases, theories, or methods when embarking on a new area of inquiry
  • summarize readings by pasting in a text and asking for a summary. Additional prompts may be used to refine the summary by asking the chatbot to assume a certain level of knowledge on the part of the reader.

Cautionary Uses of Generative AI

  • best not to use when looking for current information or highly niche or emerging fields and technologies
  • asking for names of prominent researchers in a field. ChatGPT has been known to make people up or list people who have never been researchers

To help GAI create content, you need to write a clear and well-thought out prompt. A prompt can be a few words, a single sentence, or a paragraph. A well-considered prompt assists GAI in producing output that will be relevant and useful. GAI also needs a context for the content it will create from a prompt; the more information that can be provided in the prompt, the more likely GAI will create content that will answer the question or command.

GAI can perform a variety of tasks:

  • text generation
  • image generation
  • questions and answers
  • problem solving
  • writing code
  • data analysis
  • summarizing and synthesizing text
  • writing essays, article, and posts
  • language translation

Ensuring Generative AI Gives the Best Responses to Your Prompts

In order to use GAI effectively, know the right questions to ask and how to phrase them for best results. Vagueness creates a vague response. Don't hesitate to experiment with your prompt. Given that GAI is constantly changing and being updated, what worked well yesterday may not work today. Be exploratory in creating prompts.

Give Generative AI Explicit Instructions, such as:

  • Think step-by-step
  • Rephrase an idea
  • Summarize an idea
  • Act as if...
  • Synthesize two or more ideas
  • Tell me what else you need to do this.
  • Take on an expert role, examples, act as a mathematician; take the role of a journalist
  • Provide GAI with a reference or example
  • Split complex tasks into simpler subtasks
  • Thread conversations so that your query becomes interactive with the chatbot.
  • When looking for an expansive or creative response, use open-ended questions. For more specific, concise answers, use closed-ended questions.
  • Remember, even with the best prompts, LLMs in their current state may not always generate the desired response. It may take some experimentation and iteration to improve the effectiveness of your prompts.

Be Specific About the Format of the Output, for example:

  • Number of words, or paragraphs, writing style or tone, reading level
  • Bullet points, tables, html, css, etc.
  • WARNING: Beware hallucinations! Chatbots tend to be highly confident in their output and often provide incorrect or fabricated information. When unfamiliar with a topic, make sure to check the chatbot's work. The chatbot is eager to please and does not know what it does not know. Some chatbots make up citations to sources which do not exist so it is probably best not to prompt the chatbot with a query asking for "five articles on biochemical weapons," for example. Both Microsoft's CoPilot and Google Search Generative Experience provide links to the websites they claim as sources of information for their output which can be very helpful.

For more information on learning how to create prompts see:

Learn Prompting Online Course/Ebook

The definitive guide to prompt engineering, it is an easy-to-read guide to creating prompts. Includes illustrations and hands-on examples and does not need to be read all at once or in any particular order.

Can I Use Chat-GPT for my assignments?

Always check with your instructor before using generative AI for any portion of a course assignment. Some courses may allow the limited use of generative AI; in others, the use of AI may be considered a violation of the Honor Code. No matter what, any time you use generative AI for an assignment, you must acknowledge and cite it. 

Visit the "Citing Generative AI" tab on this guide to learn more about acknowledging your use of generative AI in a variety of styles. 

AI chatbots are constantly are constantly evolving. Thus, the landscape changes rapidly. Information presented about these systems are accurate, but may become quickly out-of-date.

Microsoft Copilot is considered to be an AI-powered productivity tool, integrating seamlessly with Microsoft 365 apps, such as Outlook, Word, Excel, PowerPoint, and Teams. Copilot is available through Hood's subscription to Microsoft 365.

To learn more about using CoPilot see Microsoft Copilot Learning Hub.

Chat-GPT provides free access to a chatbot with limitations, but it may be adequate for most needs. Recently Chat-GPT updated Chat-GPT-4 to GPT-4o, making the level of intelligence open to all with some limitations. Usage is depended by the number of queries that can be sent to GPT-4o and also depends on usage and demand of the system. A paid account provides priority access, early access to the latest features, voice mode, better data analysis that creates interactive charts and tables from datasets. A paid subscription might provide results that are more reliable.