Archaeological Field School

Carroll College 2013 Archaeological Field School

The annual Carroll College summer archaeological field school will be offered June 10-19, 2013, for 4 credits, either Social Science or Natural Science core credits. During the course of the summer, students will be introduced to the basics of archaeological field methods and research design directed through fieldwork on the local archaeological record.

Course Description

The field school research will be conducted within the Helena National Forest. The area is located in the northern Big Belt Mountains about 20 miles northeast of Helena. Students will be camping for 9 days and will be expected to participate in camp activities (cooking, camp upkeep, etc). Students should be prepared for full days of digging and/or hiking, sometimes in remote areas. In addition to excavation and survey techniques, students will also learn laboratory procedures, including cataloging artifacts and performing basic artifact analysis. Evenings will also include informal lectures and discussion on local prehistory, history, geomorphology and ecology.

Students must provide personal camping gear, including sleeping bag, tent, sturdy hiking boots, weather appropriate clothing, water bottle, backpack, sunscreen, insect repellant and a field notebook. A lab fee of $100.00 will cover the cost of food and field equipment.

Current Research

The 2010, 2011, and 2012 Carroll College Archaeological Field Schools focused on the excavation of local rock shelters dating to over 6,000 years old. Our research centers on paleoenvironmental change and human adaptation. Our research has monitored climatic variability and documented the environmental responses, such as changes in vegetation communities, animal populations, forest fire frequencies, sedimentation rates, as well as prehistoric human adaptation to those changing conditions.

Syllabus

Download the Archaeological Field School syllabus, which contains the class description, objectives, grading and assessment.