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Title: Integrator Online for Introductory Psychology by Arthur J. Kohn, Wendy Kohn ISBN: 0534357466 Publisher: Wadsworth Publishing Pub. Date: 1999 Format: Hardcover List Price(USD): $28.95

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Average Customer Rating: 5

Rating: 5
Summary: A Software approach to the hardware & wetware of the mind.
Comment: For the serious student fed up with textbook study, but not willing to switch attention to their favourite video game just yet, here is a most valuable teaching and learning resource compromise for the student psychologist. Arthur and Wendy Kohn's latest CD-ROM, 'The Integrator for Introductory Psychology, 2.0' offers an engaging, interactive study guide for students both new and advanced covering the full breadth of topics contained in most undergraduate psychology curricula. The authors have carefully selected the core issues and illustrations contained in some of the best selling psychology main texts published by Brooks/Cole and have supplemented this package with a variety of stimulating animated tutorials, exercises, practical assignments and other learning materials. Developed using Appware (now called Microbrew) a second application on the disc programmed via Macromedia Director is called 'LectureMaker' which allows the student (or Lecturer/Tutor) to create a series of files for their own presentations and/or printing of both text and graphic information, with easy use of an export facility to other packages such as Excel or Word for further integration with material from other source-files. In practice, I have only tried running this package with an Apple Mac Performa 6320, but did so without glitches on the whole (there were occasional script-'Handler' errors usually recovered from by 'continue' selection) and I was very impressed with its performance. The one CD-ROM will also run with PC-Windows, and LectureMaker files will open OK even if constructed on the other platform - a most welcome additional feature. No hard copy manual was needed for the use of either program, although available from the same disc by using the printing command. Hardware requirements are for 68LC040 CPU or better for the Mac (system 7.1 min./8 MB RAM + 2X CD-ROM) or for PC, 486DX-66MHz CPU min./8MB Windows 3.1/16 MB Windows 95). Software requirement of QuickTime 2.1/2,5 is included on the CD. What of the content then ? 'The Integrator 2.0' opens (and continues) with consistent and clear, user-friendly menu pages which may be specifically tailored to suit the chapter structure of any of the six named psychology textbooks. However, my own students, none of whom have used these as their principle study texts, were not at all concerned to see an unfamiliar presentation style or novel chapter architecture. Each chapter heading reflects a standard psychological topic area and comprises an option list from 'slide shows', a series of walk-through, self-paced guides to key points, names and ideas and activities pertinent to the field under review. All were informative (an average 15-20 slides, although some were a little short - only 3-4) and most appropriately illustrated with non-intrusive optional text boxes, animations and backing sound-tracks navigated by page-buttons each side of the screen. More interactive and engaging were each topic's self-paced tutorials, surveys and experiments (I would particularly recommend the research methods section and the Tower of Hanoi animation task - plus other ideas and material steals for use in 1st/2nd year practical classes ?). Occasionally there were repeated sections called up as seen from previous pages, but this is not a fault of the authors, only an artefact of one of the strengths of such a non-monolithic, multi-pathway approach for use in any study employing such multi-media devices. Fast access times were achieved whether the programs be hard-disk installed or not, and this serious attempt to educate as well as entertain succeeds well without any techno-babble or specialist computer orientation being required on the part of the user. Watching some of my tutees freely exploring the package (without any guidance from myself) I noticed that my final Honours students were more frequently engaged, and for longer sessions, than were those of the junior years, the former also tending to make more use of the testing and self-assessment activities, jumping between chapters more than did their junior peers. In summary, these two offerings from the Integrator series are superb examples of novel multi-media teaching materials worthy of investigation by both student and tutors of Psychology alike. It really does look like the kind of package that so many of us wished to have put together but never did ! Kohn and Kohn have assembled more than 150 slide shows, tutorials, experiments, activities and self-test components in the context of several standard American textbooks of Psychology, appropriately complimented with over 1200 images, animations and film clips relevant to those and other course text's material. I for one will be enquiring about arrangements for site-licensing for our main psychology library and computer labs. Did I like the package myself ? Yes, and I have now used it during a 1st year lecture to their great applause ! Although grounded in the textbooks referenced, these packages provide a rich source of teaching and learning materials which may be utilised for a variety of purposes. They are both visually stimulating and intellectually engaging, offering a variety of interactive tasks set within an easy to operate, flexible file management system. Even if one does not like, or wish to engage with, any of the activities available on these Integrator CDs, they will nonetheless provoke self-reflection both as users and as interactors with this broad overview of psychological topics. As I so often say to my incoming first year tutees. 'the worst thing that can happen, is that you are going to learn something about yourselves'.(edited for length)