The U-M Training Program in Archaeology (ANTHRARC 487) provides students with a unique opportunity to participate in original field research. Students receive training in basic methods of archaeological survey, excavation, artifact recording and analysis, while participating in ongoing research in the area chosen by the course director. Field training is integrated with lectures on archaeological method and theory, and the prehistory and ethnography of the area under study. Laboratory sessions introduce students to the analysis of archaeological artifacts, including stone tools, ceramics, animal bones, and plant remains. In addition to learning the basic technical skills of field archaeology, each students works together with the program director and staff to develop a small but original research problem, based on the archaeological data recovered and analyzed during excavations. The results of this research are presented as a written paper at the end of the field session.
