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EVALUATION

We rely on lectures, films, slides and discussion of readings to convey and clarify information about a broad and complex subject--more than 15,000 years of cultural evolution on the North American continent. You will enjoy ANTH 313 if you:

• are curious about cultural evolution,
• are willing to learn site names, dates, and attributes, and
• have the patience and imagination for reading scientific literature.

You are responsible for all materials covered in class, including commentary on slides and discussion of films. Take notes! If you expect to miss class, arrange for a classmate to take detailed notes for you; offer to reciprocate. 

Preparation and Participation

Most weeks we read a chapter in David Hurst Thomas' overview of North American prehistory for Tuesday. Take notes; make a list of important terms and any questions you might have. Each Thursday we read a pair of journal articles on a specific sites or topics. You will bring a typed, edited 1-2 page discussion paper based on these readings to class. More on discussion papers.

Quizzes

There are three quizzes, in weeks 4, 7 and 10, consisting of term identification and essay-style questions from lecture (including films and discussion) and the readings.

Poster Project

You write a short research paper on an archaeological site in North America that can be visited by the public. This paper forms the basis for design and execution of a poster that will be presented to the class during the final exam period. More on poster project.

Weighting of required work: 40%  Preparation & Participation 30%  Three Quizzes 20%  Poster Project 10%  Poster Presentation

Grades are assigned according to the following scale: A = 93-100, A- = 90-92; B+ = 87-89; B = 83-86; B- = 80-82; C+ = 77-79; C = 73-76; C- = 70-72; D+ = 67-69; D = 63-66; D- = 60-62; < 60 = F.

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GOALS
Participation in this course will strengthen your skills as a reader, researcher, writer, speaker, and listener, and will enhance your knowledge and appreciation of:

• What we know of the long unwritten history of human beings in North America.
• The potential and limits of material culture as a source of information about the past.
• The major regions and periods of cultural development used by archeologists to organize our telling of this story.
• The diverse environments and resources available to earlier peoples.
• Some of the ways in which people coped with environmental change in the past.
• Some of the ways in which people adjusted to population increase in the past.
• Some of the ways in which people caused environmental change in the past.
• How the diverse cultures present when Europeans arrived came to be so many and so distinctive.
• How we can engage in a respectful discussion of completing claims to ownership of the past.