Unit information: Archaeology and Anthropology Field School in 2011/12

Unit name	Archaeology and Anthropology Field School
Unit code	ARCH20017
Credit points	20
Level of study	I/5
Teaching block(s)	Teaching Block 2 (weeks 13 - 24)
Unit director	Dr. Margiotti
Open unit status	Not open
Pre-requisites	None
Co-requisites	None
School/department	Department of Anthropology and Archaeology
Faculty	Faculty of Arts

Description including Unit Aims

This unit aims to acquaint students with archaeological and anthropological fieldwork techniques, and to provide an opportunity to experience first-hand how knowledge is produced through engagement with the field.

Aims:

• To give students experience in preparing and managing a research project.

• To give students practical experience in conducting archaeological and anthropological fieldwork.

• To explore the varieties of possible approaches to research, including a comprehensive understanding of the ethical issues involved.

• To give students experience in presenting, discussing, writing-up and where appropriate disseminating their fieldwork results.

• To give students experience in working as part of a team.

Intended Learning Outcomes

• Students will gain familiarity with archaeological and anthropological techniques, such as interviewing, recording, map regression, archival research and standing building recording, and will have gained first hand experience in their applications.
• Students will gain familiarity with the process of conducting research, including a first-hand knowledge of the ethnical implications of being a researcher with human subjects.
• Students will learn to work as part of a team, in planning, executing and presenting their research.
• Students will become familiar with writing up ethnographic and archaeological material, and with the production of a final report.

Teaching Information

Lectures, field-trips, feed-back sessions.

Assessment Information

Presentation: To be made as part of the final, tenth session of the course. This is a compulsory element of the course, but not formally assessed. Field-work diary (50%) Final report (50%).

Field-work diaries may be submitted in any reasonable media (if in doubt please check with your tutors). Final reports should be word-processed with illustrations as usually appropriate, submitted via Blackboard. If there is accompanying digital media, this may need to be submitted by hand.

This is a self-led project. The formal teaching time is designed to provide a point of contact for questions and feed-back. Project work is expected to take place in your own time. Part of this process is that student groups organise their research work together efficiently, which will require planning meetings within each respective group, as well as the fieldwork itself.

Reading and References

Buchli, V. & G. Lucas (ed). 2001. Archaeologies of the Contemporary Past. London: Routledge.

Coleman, S. and Collins, P. (eds) 2006 Locating the Field: space, place and context in anthropology, Oxford; Berg.

Gosden, C. 1999. Anthropology & Archaeology: a changing relationship. London: Routledge

Graves-Brown, P. (ed.) 2000. Matter, materiality, and modern culture. London: Routledge

Hicks, D. & M. Beaudry (eds). 2006. The Cambridge Companion to Historical Archaeology. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.

Inda, J and Rosaldo, R. 2008 The Anthropology of Globalization: a Reader, Oxford: Blackwell.

Kuklick, H. (ed.) 2008 A New History of Anthropology Oxford: Blackwell.

Lucas, G. 2001. Critical Approaches to Fieldwork: contemporary and historical archaeological practice. London: Routledge.

Stocking, G. 1983 Observers observed: essays on ethnographic fieldwork, London: University of Wisconsin Press.

Tarlow, S. & West, S. 1998. The Familiar Past? Archaeologies of Britain 1550-1950. London: Routledge.

Watson, C. (ed.) 1999 Being there: fieldwork in anthropology, London: Pluto Press.