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Choose and Specify a Task

What this concept is​

A useful assistance request has a goal, relevant context, constraints, a desired response and a way to check success. Task choice comes first: decide which part you need to learn yourself and which supporting work can be delegated.

Why it matters here​

“Teach me everything” makes it hard to judge progress. A bounded request can produce a hint, a practice question or an organized draft whose quality you can actually inspect.

Concrete example​

Weak: “Make me productive.” Better: “I have 80 minutes this week in two blocks of 40. Help me practice saving and restoring a text file. Include one five-minute review inside each block, no paid tools, and no file changes. First ask which device I use; then propose a plan whose minutes add to 80.”

The arithmetic and device constraint are checkable. The request does not expose a private calendar or authorize the assistant to change settings.

Common confusion / misconception​

More prompt text is not always more useful. A personality role such as “world-class tutor” does not replace a clear contract. A good prompt can still produce a wrong answer; the acceptance check remains necessary.

How to use it​

Write your own target first. Supply only the relevant, non-sensitive excerpt. Say whether you want a hint, critique, example or finished draft. Specify uncertainty handling and prohibited actions. Check the response against the original task before revising the request.

Check yourself​

What should happen if an assistant needs an unavailable detail? It should ask or state a bounded assumption. Inventing your operating system would make the plan less reliable.

Mini drill or application​

Rewrite a request to “summarize this chapter” as a request for three comprehension questions based only on a supplied short passage. Include an answer-check rule but ask to keep answers hidden until you attempt them.

Read this only if stuck​

The optional AI Fluency course offers a task-selection and evaluation framework. Vendor teaching guidance is not proof of learning benefit for this curriculum.