3 Practical AI Resources for College Students and Teachers

During the Summer of 2025, I developed 2 online AI (artificial intelligence) tools designed to support both students and teachers: 

• a catalogue of AI Study Prompts for students 
• a catalogue of prompts that promote AI Literacy for teachers 

I also created a ready-to-use classroom activity to teach students how to chat with generative AI tools while remaining actively engaged in the interaction. 

These free resources are available to anyone who would like to use them with their students or to strengthen their own understanding of AI tools.  

Tool 1: AI study prompts for students  

Why use the tool? 

AI policies in colleges tend to focus on what students shouldn’t do (in terms of plagiarism, cheating, and breaches of academic integrity). However, these policies leave a big gap between the restrictions and what is actually happening in practice. Indeed, according to studies and a survey I conducted at my own college, approximately 90% of students use AI for their studies every week, mostly outside of class and without guidance. This reality motivated me to create the tool. My goal was to help students understand what constitutes an acceptable use of AI during the study phase, not during the work phase. 

In my view, it is acceptable if a student asks AI to explain difficult concepts, clarify a rubric, rephrase assignment instructions in simpler terms, or even create a step-by-step study plan to help organize their time. However, once students start working on the actual coursework (such as brainstorming ideas, organizing and writing essays, and completing any assignments), AI should not be used without explicit teacher permission. 

In other words, I wanted to draw a clear line for students between responsible AI use as a study tool and uses that conflict with college policies by being dishonest or preventing teachers from assessing students’ true competencies and knowledge. At the same time, I wanted to provide teachers (including myself) with a safe and practical starting point for open conversations with students about their use of AI. 

What is the tool? 

The tool I developed is a catalogue of AI Study Prompts designed to support students in their learning and during their study phase. The idea is to put students “in the driver’s seat,” using AI as a tool to guide their learning, rather than replace it. 

The prompts are organized into 15 categories, covering a wide range of study situations. A few examples include:   

• Understand Guidelines 
• Plan Project 
• Plan Study Time 
• Clarify Concepts & Texts 
• Organize & Simplify Notes 
• Deepen Understanding 
• etc.  

How to use the tool? 

Students begin by selecting a category that aligns with their study needs. Each category provides a set of fill-in-the-blank prompts that can be copied and pasted into any AI tool. Students simply replace the text in square brackets with their own details, such as the topic they are studying or the assignment instructions that need clarification. 

Example of a prompt called Study Techniques proposed to students under the category Plan Study Time.

Example of a prompt called Comparative Problem-Solving Strategy proposed to students under the category Study Science.

Students can also save their favourite prompts or search the catalogue for specific ones. The prompts act as safe starting points, helping students feel confident about using AI in ways that support their learning. 

Tool 2: AI Prompts for teachers to teach AI literacy 

Why use the tool?

Students can quickly develop misplaced trust in AI because it always responds confidently, rarely admits “I don’t know,” and presents itself as endlessly reliable. After just a couple of weeks of using it, they start to believe that it “knows everything.”  

For me, the first step in teaching AI literacy is to break this misconception. Once students see how AI actually works and understand its limitations and mechanics, they’re in a much better position to think critically about how to use it responsibly. 

One of the biggest challenges in teaching AI literacy today is that it has become harder to reveal the limitations of generative AI. Not long ago, we could demonstrate how these tools hallucinate by simply asking them to count the number of Rs in “strawberry.” But with newer models that can “reason” and even search the web, such errors are less common and much harder to reproduce reliably during classroom demonstrations. 

That’s why I created a tool specifically for teachers to help their students experience AI’s limits firsthand, rather than just taking our word for it. 

What is the tool? 

The AI Literacy Guide for teachers is an online catalogue of classroom-tested prompts designed to demonstrate how generative AI truly works and to reveal its limitations, such as: 

• AI’s biases 
• hallucinations 
• fabricated reasoning 
• pattern-based limitations 
• etc.  

The catalogue is a living resource: I’ve included prompts I’ve used in my own workshops at Champlain College, along with interesting ones I’ve come across from other AI users. I update it regularly as new prompts emerge and older ones become less effective with the development of improved models.  

How to use it? 

As a teacher, you don’t need to be an AI expert to use this resource. It can also help you deepen your own understanding of AI tools. If you plan to use it in class with students, select a few prompts and try them out first to make sure the AI model you are using accurately shows the limitations you intend to expose.  

You can also select a few prompts that match your teaching objectives. For example, a Humanities teacher might want to highlight political biases. Each prompt includes classroom instructions and, in some cases, suggestions for AI models to test, along with follow-up prompts. 

For instance, if you ask ChatGPT to generate an image of a watch set to 3:30, it always defaults to displaying 10:10 (the time most commonly displayed in watch advertisements). This reveals how large language models (LLMs) duplicate patterns from their training data rather than show real understanding. 

Example of a prompt available in the AI Literacy Guide demonstrating the limitations of AI with pattern copying. 

ChatGPT’s response to the prompt: “Generate the image of a watch that displays 3:30”

I like to approach it as an exploration with my students: we run the prompts, compare outputs, and discuss what they mean. The differences in outputs can spark valuable conversations. In the classroom, I encourage students to try the prompts themselves on their own devices. Seeing the hallucinations firsthand leaves a lasting impression!  

I invite you to try these resources with your students or in your own practice and see how they work in your context. I’d also love to hear from you if you come across prompts that reveal AI’s limitations in surprising ways. Feel free to share your experience in the comments below!