Recipe: AI Literacy
Purpose
Generative AI powered by Large Language Models (LLMs), otherwise known as “chatbots”. We hope to further your understanding of when, where, how and why to use these potent tools.
AI used in this Assignment
In this assignment, we will be using Microsoft Copilot and will be evaluating the resulting output.
Tasks (estimated time: 2 hours)
To complete this assignment, you will be submitting prompts to Microsoft Copilot. The final submission is a Word Document containing the conversation that you had with Copilot. In Copilot, there is a “copy” button that you can use to copy each element of your conversation. The submission will also contain a reflection written by the student (not AI-generated).
Use Copilot to create a fictional newsworthy story about a fictional celebrity. You can ask the AI to create a story about a success, a life milestone, a tragedy or any other SFW theme/event.
Tips: If the AI is reluctant to carry out this task, try re-writing your prompt as an educational exercise. You might also emphasize that the celebrity you named is made up (do not give them a name like “Saylor Twift”).
This fictional story should be several paragraphs long.
In your own words, write a 300 word minimum reflection describing your impressions of the AI’s ability to do the task. Answer the following questions:
Were there any parts that you thought the AI was able to do particularly well?
Was there anything that gives away the fact that it was generated by AI (besides the fictional celebrity and setting)?
If you were to re-write those parts that gave it away, do you think that you could fool someone into believing that the article was true?
What implications do the capabilities of AI have for reporting on public figures?
Resources
Submission Guidelines
Include details about structure, technical requirements, submission methods, file types, etc.
Submit a Word Document with all of the prompts and responses you had while doing the activity. Embed at least one screenshot of the activity to show you using Microsoft Copilot for this activity.
Criteria for Success
Refer students to an attached rubric and/or include a description of what you consider successful work and/or relevant examples
NOTES FOR INSTRUCTORS (DO NOT INCLUDE THIS SECTION IN YOUR ASSIGNMENT):
Recipe Substitutions/Variations:
Change the stakeholder: In order to adapt this activity for courses in other fields, you may need to change the stakeholder from “celebrity” to something more appropriate for your discipline, like “politician”, “farmer”, “lawyer”, or “historian”.
Change the output format: The generated content could instead be a missive addressed either to or from that stakeholder. Other potential output formats to consider for an assignment like this could be a short speech, a press release, marketing copy, business plans, lesson plans, etc.
Game Activity: To turn this into an active classroom activity, you could try recreating the format of the “Bluff the Listener” game from the NPR game show Wait Wait Don’t Tell Me!. In the game show, panelists present one real and two fake news stories, and the listener tries to guess which of the stories is real. Similarly, students could use AI to create one or two fake news stories / letters / other products, combine them with a real one, and challenge other students in class to identify the real item in pairs or in groups.
ChatGPT: If students were to use ChatGPT instead of Microsoft Copilot, then a submission can be the “share” link to the conversation instead of a Word document containing the conversation.
