Anth 151 is primarily a lecture and tutorial class, with hands-on examination of facsimile human remains and other lab-based activities conducted in tutorials.

Technology used and required:

Students will need to have access to the iLearn section, as handouts, FAQs, video links, and a host of other resources will be available through iLearn. The online discussion sections for Anth 151 historically have been very active as students help each other to understand key concepts. The unit convenor makes extensive use of online slides, videos, Prezis, and other resources.

Readings

All readings for the unit will be available through the iLearn space for the units. Students will not be able to complete the unit without these materials. Students will also find the weekly review sheets for key concepts and additional information about assessment tasks in each weekly section of iLearn.

Lecture times

While attendance at the 2pm Wednesday Lecture is strongly encouraged, all lectures are taped through Echo 360, and slide shows (including video links and other materials), available through iLearn.

Teaching and Learning Strategy

The course as a whole is designed to convey the excitement, theoretical innovation, and new discoveries emerging in the study of human evolution.  A clearer understanding of evolutionary processes allows students to appreciate the role of evolution in shaping humans and other organisms and to better evaluate contemporary arguments that make use of evolutionary theory or research.  By the end of the unit, students should have a greater appreciation of the diversity of methods used to study human evolution, some of the most important debates within the field, and the distinctiveness of human beings among animals. 

The course provides an excellent foundation for further, more specialized study in anthropology at the 200-level, but it also provides a robust understanding of human evolution that might contribute to students’ continued study of such fields as health, psychology, politics, Aboriginal studies, and a host of other specialties. Although each week focuses roughly on a different time period in human evolution, the issues brought up in each will be extended to contemporary human life. 

For example, although the discussion of Technology in Week Eight focuses on the emergence of complex stone tools, especially the contrast between Neandertal material culture and the technology of comparable archaic Homo sapiens, we will also discussing how technological innovation affects the evolutionary development of humans up until the present. By examining how we came to be as a species, our ancestors and nearest relatives, we come to a deeper understanding of human nature itself, including the variation that exists within our species—both biological and cultural. 

Evolutionary theory is one of the most powerful explanatory mechanisms for understanding all life, but it is also prone to being abused; the thorough background provided in this unit may lead students to be more sceptical around certain types of evolutionary arguments without repudiating evolutionary theory itself. In addition, this unit on evolution and diversity provides a foundation for thinking about the relationship of culture to biology, of nature to nurture, and of psychology to social life. 

The questions posed by the origins of humanity are too big and difficult to solve with only half the evidence at our disposal, so we will become better practiced at understanding human holistically, one of the most important characteristics of anthropology. Students will do best if they realise that, to some degree, many of the key issues in the evolutionary history of our species and in the nature of our species' diversity are still subject to debate, although anthropologists and other scientists may agree on the broader outlines.