AI Learning Hub › The PAUSE Rule
An AI use workflow
The PAUSE Rule
PAUSE before you use AI. Five gates, worked in order, that turn “should I use AI for this?” into a decision you can explain — and that give you a clear answer when the honest one is no.
PPinpoint your task
AAssess AI‑fit
UUse ethically
SSelf‑assess your skills
EEnhance workflow
Gate one
Pinpoint your task(s)
Break down your overall goal into specific, concrete tasks. What do you need to create? Who is it for? What are the constraints for each part?
Output: a list of 1–2 sentence tasks, each with a clear goal, audience, and constraints.
Principle: task first, tool second. If you have chosen an AI tool before clearly defining your specific tasks, you will likely struggle to use that tool effectively.
Gate two
Assess AI‑fit
For each task, ask whether AI is the right tool.
- Creative and drafting tasks: good fit for brainstorming, outlining, or generating drafts.
- Fact-based tasks: poor fit. AI can fabricate facts and citations. Use reliable sources for research and verification.
- Alternative tools: is there a better non-AI tool — a document template, a spreadsheet function, a calculator?
- Human speed: is it simply faster to do it yourself?
Gate three
Use ethically
Can you use AI appropriately, ethically, lawfully, and respectfully for this task?
- Do not input sensitive, confidential, or prohibited data.
- Respect privacy, intellectual property, and licensing.
- Disclose AI assistance according to your institution’s policy.
- The New York Times rule: would you be comfortable if your use of AI for this task appeared on the front page of the New York Times?
Guidelines and policies
Data privacy and student records
Stanford institutional guidelines
Accessibility and inclusion
International AI ethics and risk management
- UNESCO Recommendation on the Ethics of AI
- NIST AI Risk Management Framework
- Singapore Model AI Governance Framework
Academic integrity and research
- The Belmont Report
- International Center for Academic Integrity: AI resources
- AAUP guidance on AI and academic work
Note: these guidelines are a non-exhaustive starting point. Replace the Stanford-specific links when adapting this workflow for another institution.
Gate four
Self-assess your skills
Do you have the skills, judgment, expertise, and knowledge to fully assess the AI’s output?
- If you have never drafted a specific type of technical document before, how will you determine that the AI has done it correctly?
- If you do not know how to interpret a complex legal precedent or historical event, how will you assess whether the AI has given you an appropriate argument?
- You must be able to verify the accuracy and quality of the output. If you cannot, you must abort.
Gate five
Enhance your workflow
Does using AI save you net time — verification included — and help you grow while protecting quality?
- Time check: set a time cap, say 15–20 minutes, for prompting. If verification and edits will take longer than doing the task yourself, use an alternative.
- Growth check: use AI as a tutor to learn, as a sparring partner to practise, or as an assistant for tasks beyond your expertise — with expert review.
How to frame prompts for upskilling
Just “do it”
Write a Python script that scrapes a website for headlines.
Teach me how
Act as a tutor. Explain the steps to write a Python web scraper using BeautifulSoup. Provide commented code for each step and explain the key functions.
Just “do it”
Summarize this article for me.
Teach me how
Help me improve my summarizing skills. First, create a reusable checklist for summarizing academic articles. Then apply that checklist to summarize this text, showing how each part of your summary corresponds to a checklist item.
Strategy: stay expertly sharp. To prevent skill decay, balance AI assistance with manual practice. For repetitive tasks, consider having the AI do one, then doing the next one yourself to stay proficient.
The empty room test. If the AI disappeared, would you still have the core skills and knowledge to complete the task yourself? This is a check against over-reliance and skill atrophy.
The human must always stay in the driver’s seat. If you are not making the final decisions and taking accountability, abort.
Worked examples
Practical examples
Good fit
Brainstorming ideas
Task: “Generate 10 potential titles for a workshop on time management for new students.”
Analysis: a creative, low-risk task. There are no facts to verify, and it is much faster than brainstorming from a blank slate. The human remains the judge of the best title.
Poor fit
Financial analysis
Task: “Analyze our department’s Q3 spending report and identify areas for budget cuts.”
Analysis: a high-risk task involving confidential data (prohibited) and requiring complete factual accuracy. A spreadsheet and human analysis are the correct tools. Using AI is an immediate abort.
Borderline
Drafting a memo
Task: “Draft a memo summarizing the key findings from the attached public report on student enrollment trends.”
Analysis: this can save time, but it requires heavy verification and you will not internalise the information the way you would if you drafted it yourself. The AI can draft the structure, but every fact, figure, and conclusion must be checked against the source report. Proceed only if you have the skills and the time for a thorough review.
The same five gates, for your role
Applying PAUSE at the Law School
For faculty
- P
- Break down research into specific, task-focused questions.
- A
- Good for lecture outlines or brainstorming exam questions. Poor for grading subjective work or novel legal analysis.
- U
- Never input unpublished research or confidential student data. Uphold academic integrity standards.
- S
- Use your subject-matter expertise to rigorously verify all legal arguments, citations, and scholarly claims.
- E
- Accelerate literature reviews and teaching prep to free up time for high-level analysis and student mentorship.
For students
- P
- Explain a complex legal concept simply. Check grammar and style on a draft.
- A
- Good for studying or improving writing. Poor for writing your core analysis or performing citable legal research.
- U
- Your use must comply with the Honor Code. Always consult your instructor’s syllabus, or ask them directly about their AI use policy, before using AI for coursework. Unauthorised aid is a serious violation.
- S
- Can you spot an error? You are responsible for every word. If you do not understand the topic well enough to verify the AI, you are not ready to use it for that task.
- E
- Use AI as a tutor to generate practice questions, or as a coach to improve your writing structure — not as a shortcut that prevents learning.
For staff
- P
- Draft an email announcement. Create a first draft of a departmental policy. Organise event logistics into a checklist.
- A
- Good for communications and administrative tasks. Poor for handling sensitive HR, student, or financial data.
- U
- Protect confidential data and personally identifiable information.
- S
- Can you verify operational details? Confirm room bookings, contact information, and policy details that the AI generates. Accuracy is paramount.
- E
- Increase efficiency in communications, event planning, and internal documentation to focus on more strategic work.
All five gates at a glance
One-page decision flow
Start: pinpoint your task(s) — P
Assess AI‑fit (A). Is AI the right tool for this task?
Use ethically (U). Can you use AI lawfully, ethically, and respectfully for this task?
Self-assess your skills (S). Do you have the skills to assess the AI’s output?
Enhance your workflow (E). Does using AI genuinely improve on doing it yourself?
OK to use AI — verify and disclose as needed
Put it into practice
Two skills that run these gates with you
The SLS AI Orientation skill introduces the PAUSE Rule and your first disclosure record. The AI Task-Fit Coach walks a specific task through the gates and ends with a documented go / no-go.
Last reviewed: January 2026.