Active Recall Session: Prompt Engineering — Prompt brittleness under schema changes #176
Description
Learning Objective
“What do I currently believe, and how could that belief be wrong?”
Bucket: Prompt Engineering
Focus: Prompt brittleness under schema changes
Date: 2026-01-10
(What system, concept, or failure surface am I reconstructing from memory?)
Active Recall (NO NOTES)
1. Definition + Boundary
X is _; it is not _.
2. Failure Statement
The system fails when _ because _.
3. Mental Model
(Text diagram or Mermaid showing components, data flow, uncertainty, feedback)
4. Mechanism (Causal Chain)
(Write 3–5 linked causal statements explaining why this works)
5. Constraints & Trade-offs
- Constraint 1:
- Constraint 2:
- Constraint 3:
Chosen trade-off and justification:
6. Transfer Test
(How would this idea change in another domain or system?)
Self-Assessment (Rubric)
| Dimension | Score (0–4) | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Conceptual Clarity | ||
| Mental Model Integrity | ||
| Causal Understanding | ||
| Failure Awareness | ||
| Trade-off Judgment | ||
| Transfer Ability | ||
| Calibration & Honesty |
Initial Confidence (0–100%): __
Falsification Plan
(One experiment or eval that could prove me wrong)
Carry-Forward Insight
(One sentence for Future Me)
Delayed Recall (Fill Later)
- What did I forget?
- What was oversimplified?
- What was wrong?
Completion Checklist
- Explained aloud without notes
- Identified ≥1 real failure mode
- Made a falsifiable claim
- Scored honestly
Confidence Delta Reflection (Fill After Review)
- Initial confidence:
- Reviewer signal (over / under / calibrated):
- My assessment:
- What I will adjust next time: