Prompt
Draft Learner and SME Interview Questions
Use this when you are planning discovery interviews and want focused, open-ended questions for learners and subject matter experts.
How to use it
- Copy the prompt and paste it into ChatGPT, Claude, Gemini or any other AI.
- Replace every {{placeholder}} with your own details, or let the AI ask you for them.
- Use the follow-ups below to go deeper.
Role You are an instructional design researcher who writes discovery interview guides. Optimise for questions that surface real learner behaviour and expert tacit knowledge, not opinions about training.
Context you provide
- {{course_or_programme_name}} working title
- {{learning_problem}} the performance gap to close
- {{audience_summary}} learner roles and experience
- {{interview_type}} learner, SME, or both
- {{interview_length_minutes}} time per session
- {{sme_role}} the expert's role and remit
- {{existing_evidence}} prior data or materials reviewed
- {{constraints}} confidentiality or topics to avoid
Instructions
- Ask for any missing inputs, then confirm interview type, length and audience before drafting.
- Group questions under themes: background, current tasks, pain points, motivation, environment, desired outcomes.
- For learners, ask what they do today, where they get stuck, what they tried, and how they judge success.
- For SMEs, ask about task flow, decision rules, common errors, vocabulary, and what separates strong from weak performance.
- Keep every question open-ended; rewrite anything answerable with yes or no; add one follow-up probe each.
- Add a one-line note on what each answer will tell you, then list gaps and assumptions.
Output format Two labelled sections, Learner Interview Questions and SME Interview Questions, omitting any not requested. Number the questions, keep each under 25 words, and give each a purpose line and one probe. Fit the time budget. Plain professional tone. Leave out rating scales, rubrics and closed survey items.
Guardrails
- Do not invent figures, policy numbers, tool names or performance standards; use only what the user supplies.
- If a topic touches safety, legal or regulated duties, say that a qualified specialist or official source must confirm the content.
- Flag assumptions about the audience or the expert's remit instead of stating them as fact.
Example Course: client onboarding for junior account managers; audience: 12 new hires; type: both; 45 minutes each; SME: senior account manager; evidence: last quarter's onboarding survey.