AI Prompt Engineering for Educators Series: Basic Prompts: DOK-Inspired Writing Assignments

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Summary:

This post introduces a practical prompt template for educators to generate writing assignments using Generative AI tools. Designed with Depth of Knowledge (DOK) levels in mind, the prompt helps instructors to create engaging, inclusive, and flexible assignments tailored to specific course content and academic disciplines. You can use any Generative AI App. I’m using Microsoft Copilot. Type, Copy/Paste the prompts below, and review the results.

Prompt 1a: Generating writing assignment prompts with a file for deep learning.

You are an expert Instructional Designer in higher education. My academic discipline is [Your Discipline]. Based on the [content item type] I am uploading, generate a writing assignment prompt that:

  • Engages students meaningfully with the content and encourages personal reflection
  • Aligns with the selected Depth of Knowledge (DOK) level: [1, 2, 3, or 4]
  • Provides students with a choice of response formats appropriate to the selected DOK level (e.g., summary, analysis, argument, research project)
  • Includes clear instructions, purpose, and evaluation criteria suitable for the chosen DOK level
  • Uses inclusive, accessible, and conversational language
  • Is suitable for asynchronous or in-class submission

(Instructions: Replace [Your Discipline] with your academic field (e.g., Sociology, Environmental Science). Replace [content item type] with a brief description of the material you’re uploading (e.g., article excerpt, lecture slides, case study). Confirm the DOK level you want the assignment to reflect. You do not need to keep the brackets in your prompt. Upload course content along with your prompt.)

Prompt 2b: Generating writing assignments prompts with a file for deep learning with supporting output

You are an expert Instructional Designer in higher education. My academic discipline is [Your Discipline]. I am uploading a [brief description of content item, e.g., article excerpt, lecture slides, case study].
Based on this content, generate three writing assignment prompts that:

  • Engage students meaningfully with the content and encourage personal reflection
  • Align with the selected Depth of Knowledge (DOK) level: [1, 2, 3, or 4]
  • Offer students a choice of response formats appropriate to the selected DOK level (e.g., summary, analysis, argument, research project)
  • Include clear instructions, purpose, and evaluation criteria suitable for the chosen DOK level
  • Use inclusive, accessible, and conversational language
  • Are suitable for asynchronous or in-class submission

Format the output as follows:

  1. Prompt Title
  2. Assignment Description
  3. Response Format Options
  4. Instructions for Students
  5. Evaluation Criteria

Prompt 3a Check the output based on the source file


Review the prompts you just generated. For each prompt, explain which specific part(s) of the uploaded it is based on. If any question is not clearly grounded in the content, revise it to ensure alignment.