Teach Yourself Human Anatomy and Physiology Visually in 24 Hours 2011
Distributed by Rapid Learning Center, 27815 Ben Nevis Way, Yorba Linda, CA 92887; 877-727-4310
Produced by the anatomy and physiology team at Rapid Learning Center
Director n/a
DVD, color, 24 1-hr. sections
College - General Adult
Health Sciences, Anatomy, Physiology
Date Entered: 12/21/2011
Reviewed by Lori Widzinski, Health Sciences Library, University at Buffalo, State University of New YorkThe marketing claims for this DVD would lead one to believe that you can learn everything you need to know about human anatomy and physiology in 24 hours. Handily, there are 24 chapters on this DVD (which seems more like a CD-ROM), so one could spend an hour on each one. According to the course description, the materials include “…comprehensive coverage on the structures and functions of all 11 human systems at molecular, cellular and human organ levels.” It makes one wonder why there are college courses that take entire semesters to cover the same topics when you can pull an all-nighter and learn it all at once! This reviewer certainly hopes most health care providers get a little more than 24 hours of instruction on anatomy and physiology.
This program is worthy of a recommended with reservations rating. It’s recommended for its content—the coverage of so many in-depth topics is laudable. Each chapter include a Core Tutorial made up of slides covering the main topic; a Problem Drill which is primarily a multiple choice quiz/test; and a Cheat Sheet that gives pertinent facts for quick review. The Core Tutorial is basically Powerpoint slides using various clip art, photos, and illustrations together with an audio narration. The Cheat Sheet is well done, and would serve not only as a personal cheat sheet, but would make a nice handout if used in an educational setting. There’s even a Bonus Master Cheat Sheet. However, the reservations come in with the impact of the lessons and the usability of the disc. While the visual impact of each slide is fair, the illustrations are nothing that isn’t already well used in other publications and the clip art pictures of health care providers is hokey at best; the audio narration is downright boring. Today’s students are pretty savvy visual learners, used to sophisticated video and audio, and it is highly suspect that the design used here will hold the interest of many. Navigation on the disc is somewhat non-intuitive, for example if you are going through the Core Tutorial, you need to jump back to the main menu to switch to the Drill or Cheat Sheet. The program also touts a printable ebook and audiobook. This reviewer could find neither the files themselves nor links to them. As it stands, this DVD is a fine study/review program. However, compared to other anatomy and physiology programs for college level audiences, the audio, video, and infomercial marketing detract from its potential.