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Reviewer: John Thomas Ritschdorff

Intelligent tutoring systems (ITS) is the current name of the field that is concerned with employing ideas and techniques from artificial intelligence in order to develop instructional computing systems. During the past two decades there has been much research activity pertaining to the design, expectations, performance, and requirements of such systems. Information about this research has mostly been published in the form of technical reports, conference proceedings, and journal papers. Attempts to compare or to present an overview of such systems have been infrequent and often limited in scope. Wenger's book is a welcome contribution in this regard; it offers an extensive and comprehensive view of intelligent tutoring systems. The book is divided into three sections. The first section is an introduction to intelligent tutoring systems. This part contains historical information and a discussion of the issues that are basic to intelligent systems. The second section includes eleven chapters and comprises a survey of individual systems. Systems are grouped according to the contributions that they have made toward the explication or resolution of specific issues of interest for intelligent tutoring systems. Over 50 tutoring systems are mentioned in this section and many are described in some detail. The third section provides a conceptual perspective for intelligent tutoring systems; this is based upon the accumulated knowledge about these systems and can serve as a foundation for future work. Throughout the book the author stresses that the notions of knowledge and communication are central to the understanding of intelligent tutoring systems. The term knowledge communication is introduced to emphasize the significance for intelligent tutoring systems of the interrelationship between the study of communication processes and the nature of knowledge. Knowledge communication provides the unifying theme of Wenger's work. The purpose of this work is to serve as a reference volume on intelligent tutoring systems. Wenger attempts to present a comprehensive survey of research activity in intelligent tutoring systems, an assessment of this activity, and those directions for further study that can be identified. This purpose is certainly achieved: the survey of research work is extensive, historical and personal assessments are provided, and open questions are regularly indicated. The most notable feature of this book is the manner in which breadth and depth have been achieved simultaneously. It is truly a comprehensive reference work. All major tutoring systems are included and appropriately discussed. This is not done in catalog format, however; the discussion of tutoring systems is always from the perspective of knowledge communication. Unifying conceptual and theoretical views pervade the consideration of individual systems. One weakness of Wenger's book appears in the development of the knowledge communication theme. There is a noticeable absence of references to potential contributions from learning theorists and educational psychologists. Much is known about teaching and learning that does not appear in this volume. While this work focuses primarily on contributions from artificial intelligence, the interdisciplinary nature of the subject matter suggests that a more visible presence of other sources would be desirable. Overall, Wenger's book is a valuable contribution to the literature of artificial intelligence and intelligent tutoring systems. The extensive and comprehensive treatment of the field, and the movement toward a theoretical perspective centered about a unifying theme, make this work an important addition to the literature. This book is an excellent reference tool. A sophisticated reader will find it very useful. A naive reader will benefit from the book by receiving a synopsis, some discussion, and bibliographic pointers for the further study of a specific system of interest. This volume is not intended to be a primary textbook and would best be used as a supplementary resource. The physical format of the book is very good. Figures and narrative are nicely arranged and support the use of this volume. There is a subject and author index that is very complete and helpful. Each chapter contains a discussion of the primary sources for its subject matter. The reference list is extensive and current.