It Takes a Village: Student Partnership in Archaeological Course Design

Abstract

Ready to get your hands dirty? No archaeological experience necessary! In this workshop, participants will discuss the challenges of interdisciplinary course design through a case study that aims to move away from traditional top-down learning. Specifically, the authors (a faculty member and undergraduate student team) discuss the ongoing development of experiential, interactive “lab”-style activities for the Acadia undergraduate course Introduction to Archaeology (CLAS 1803). This presentation will be of interest across all disciplines, since the activities themselves were designed to challenge traditional methods of teaching and learning (passive, lecture-style), in order to create a more fulsome, bi-directional classroom environment with engaged learners (communities of practice). Attention will be paid to the issue of student labour, the models of traditional laboratory sessions (typically in the pure and applied sciences), and challenges faced when teaching interdisciplinary topics. And, of course, participants will take part in one of the lab activities - led by the undergraduate RA for this course - on the topic of osteoarchaeology.