Defining Your Domain

The Art of Domain Definition

Prefer working without AI? See the Building Manually cluster for a hands-on approach.

The most common mistake in curriculum design is being too broad. "A curriculum on philosophy" is too broad. "A curriculum on how 20th-century analytic philosophy addressed the mind-body problem" is focused enough to be useful.

The Domain Definition Prompt

Here's the prompt you'll use. It's also available as a standalone file at /prompts/01-domain-definition.md:

I want to build a self-directed research curriculum on [YOUR DOMAIN].

Please help me define this curriculum by addressing:

1. **Central Question**: What is the core question this curriculum helps answer? Frame it as: "What will someone who completes this be able to understand or do?"

2. **Scope Definition**:
   - What specific aspects of [YOUR DOMAIN] should be included?
   - What should be explicitly excluded to maintain focus?
   - What level of depth are we aiming for?

3. **Intellectual Traditions**:
   - What schools of thought or academic disciplines inform this domain?
   - Who are the foundational thinkers?
   - What are the key debates or tensions within the field?

4. **Audience**:
   - What prior knowledge should learners have?
   - What are they likely trying to achieve?

5. **Success Criteria**: How would someone know they've "completed" this curriculum? What would they be able to do or discuss?

Please be specific and opinionated. I want a focused curriculum, not a comprehensive survey.

Run this prompt, then review the output carefully. Ask follow-up questions to refine the framing.

Example: A Curriculum on "Device Theory"

Here's how domain definition worked for a curriculum on how material, conceptual, and ritual instruments shape human reality:

Central Question: How do devices—material, conceptual, and ritual—mediate human experience and become naturalized as "just how things are"?

Scope:

Included: Social construction theory, media ecology, ritual studies, technology philosophy
Excluded: Technical implementation, specific technologies, historical surveys

Traditions: Phenomenology (Heidegger), sociology of knowledge (Berger/Luckmann), media theory (McLuhan), ritual studies (Bell)

Audience: Researchers, designers, and thinkers interested in how technologies shape society—not technologists themselves.

This focused definition made it possible to curate 25 meaningful lessons rather than 100 superficial ones.

Assignment

Use the Domain Definition Prompt (below) with your preferred AI assistant (Claude, GPT-4, etc.) to generate an initial framework for your curriculum.

Prompt Instructions:

Copy the prompt from the prompts/01-domain-definition.md file
Fill in the bracketed sections with your domain
Review the AI's output critically—it's a starting point, not final
Iterate by asking follow-up questions

Read: Domain Definition Prompt

The Central Question

Every good curriculum answers a central question. Not "What topics does this cover?" but "What will someone who completes this be able to understand or do?"

Examples:

"How do social movements create lasting change?"
"What makes distributed systems reliable?"

Your central question defines what's in scope and what's not.

AI as Brainstorming Partner

LLMs are excellent for domain definition. They can suggest canonical texts, identify adjacent fields, point out gaps in your framing, and generate alternative structures.

But remember: the AI is helping you think, not thinking for you. You need to critically evaluate every suggestion and bring your own judgment about what matters.

What's your curriculum's central question?

Hint: Frame it as what someone will understand or be able to do after completing it.

What intellectual traditions does your domain draw from?

Hint: Think about the schools of thought and key thinkers who shaped the field.

How to Define Research Questions

Various

While focused on academic research, the principles apply to curriculum design.