Project Profile Prompt-Engineering-Labor: Generative KI in der Übersetzungspraxis

The project pursues three goals.

• First, it familiarizes students with current AI-supported technologies. It introduces them to prompting and guides them to systematically develop prompts for translation tasks, text production, and text analysis.
• Second, it develops a professional approach to digital tools. Students learn to control AI systems deliberately, evaluate their outputs critically, and integrate them in ways that are legally and ethically responsible.
• Third, it establishes best-practice examples.

The lab concept brings together BA and MA students working with different language combinations (German, English, Italian, and Russian) and a wide range of text types, from general texts to highly specialized technical materials. Students learn how to design prompts for generative AI systems in a targeted and audience-specific way. They practice using AI for translation, revision, terminology management, and quality assessment. They also learn to formulate prompts precisely and to refine them through systematic iteration.

The results of the Prompt Engineering Lab will be consolidated into best-practice examples. These can complement existing AI guidelines for teaching and learning at Heidelberg University. They can also serve as a resource for other courses and disciplines within the Faculty of Modern Languages—not only in translation, but also in areas such as text production and text analysis.