Introductory Note to Students
Dear Mind and Brain student:
Several of you have requested advance information about the materials for the study group Mind and Brain that we will be doing for the Spring term. I am very pleased to inform you that we will be using excellent and highly regarded texts for this study:
Kalat's Biological Psychology, Ninth Edition, which is supported by Thomson/Wadsworth publishers, now called Cengage Learning. The book, which you will purchase from the online college bookstore comes bundled with access to the online section of the study. You will need to register separately from the college registration process (which you have already completed) for the online resources segment of this study. These resources will be critical to your success in my class because my test questions and assignments are based on lecture notes and information from the book and
technology components. We will be reading only the first half of the Kalat text for this study. Some of you (those going on to take grad record exams) may want to read this entire text.
Louis Cozolino, The Neuroscience of Psychotherapy: Building and Rebuilding the Human Brain. W.W. Norton, publisher. ISBN -13 9780393703672 (or the last number could be 3). You can purchase this book either online or through the ESC bookstore. It will be the text for the second half of this study group as we develop an understanding of mind in relation to brain, with particular emphasis on the development of mental organization.
Your course material will be available at the ESC Bookstore
http://www.esc.edu/bookstore
Bundle:0495258369
Kalat, Biological Psychology, 9th Edition
I have also ordered a number of student study guides for the Kalat text (that are optional) which you can purchase as well.
Information about this study is/will be available on my college website at http://www.esc.edu/facultywebsites. Click on Janet Bachant when you enter this site, then go to Studies, then to Brain and Behavior. I am in the process of moving to a different platform to post materials for my studies, so full information about this study is not yet online. Please use the Brain and Behavior (or Biological Psychology) section on my website for the moment to supplement the Mind and Brain section, as the first part of our study will parallel what was done in that study group. I will post information as I develop the Angel platform on this site so keep coming back to check.
If you purchase a USED Biological Psychology text, (which I do not recommend) you will still have to purchase access to Cengage Now (an online resource package which includes access to weekly quizzes) separately from the publisher. To avoid problems, purchase your Biological Psychology book from the ESC College Bookstore, just to make sure that you get the correct bundle. The Cozolino text you can purchase anywhere.
Other FREE resources available from the publisher include the book's companion website located at www.academic.cengage.com/now. Be sure to access this information to help prepare for tests and exams. When you register for this study, please use Empire State College/Saratoga as your choice of college. When prompted, you must enter the COURSE KEY, E-4X2P5D52Z2ZZX in order to register and gain access to the online section of the study.
I spent a great deal of time researching the best course material to use and I believe that you'll benefit greatly from this content. The textbook package is an essential part of your classroom experience and a key component to your being prepared and succeeding in this course. I do suggest reading Appendix A: Brief, Basic Chemistry as a warm up for those of you who feel a bit rusty in the natural science area. I also recommend that you read each module separately, highlight important points, and do the Stop and Check questions in each module. The reading for this study is utterly fascinating but requires consistent application.
I look forward to seeing you all on January 24, 2008!