Students

AHIS1300 – Digging up the Past: An Introduction to Archaeology

2024 – Session 1, In person-scheduled-weekday, North Ryde

General Information

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Unit convenor and teaching staff Unit convenor and teaching staff Unit Convenor, Lecturer, Tutor
Susan Lupack
susan.lupack@mq.edu.au
Contact via Email
25 WW, Building B, Room 158
By appointment - just write to me and we can set up a meeting time
Lecturer, Tutor
Karin Sowada
karin.sowada@mq.edu.au
Contact via Email
25 WW, Building B, Level 1
By appointment
Credit points Credit points
10
Prerequisites Prerequisites
Corequisites Corequisites
Co-badged status Co-badged status
Unit description Unit description
This unit serves as a broad introduction to archaeology, where students become familiar with its fundamental principles and concepts. Students will study the emergence of archaeology as a discipline, its purpose and aims. This unit will provide students with a foundation in the various methods and analytical techniques used to study archaeological evidence by using a combination of theory and practical case studies drawn from all periods of archaeology. Students will explore the various ways of interpreting archaeological remains, taking into account the multidisciplinary nature of the discipline.

Important Academic Dates

Information about important academic dates including deadlines for withdrawing from units are available at https://www.mq.edu.au/study/calendar-of-dates

Learning Outcomes

On successful completion of this unit, you will be able to:

  • ULO1: Acquire knowledge of the archaeological discipline
  • ULO2: Analyse source material, including archaeological records, ancient sources, and modern scholarship
  • ULO3: Identify fundamental developments, theories and techniques of archaeology
  • ULO4: Communicate archaeological information and concepts through oral, visual and written formats
  • ULO5: Demonstrate critical thinking in reading of the literature and interpretation of the data

General Assessment Information

Rubrics and other guidance for the Assessments will be posted on our iLearn site and discussed in class. To complete the unit successfully you will need a minimum mark of 50% overall, and you will have to attempt all the assessments. F / FA: 0-49% P: 50-64% CR: 65-74% D: 75-84% HD: 85-100%

LATE SUBMISSION OF ASSESSMENT TASKS: Please always let one of us know ahead of time if you are having difficulty completing an assessment or if you will not be able to attend class or complete the online tutorial task. It's just good for us to know what is going on with you -- it is not necessary to give specifics of your situation -- but it helps to hear from you, partly because Special Considerations get be delayed in busy times.

Most importantly though, please make sure to apply for a Special Consideration if you are not able to submit a task on time. That will help us to help you. I highly recommend that you become familiar with the procedure before you are in the position of having to use it - so that it does not become another challenging hurdle when you are already experiencing difficulties.

Here is the link to the webpage that will talk you through the requirements and process of Special Considerations. At the bottom of this page you will find an "Apply Now" button.

https://students.mq.edu.au/study/assessment-exams/special-consideration

LATE ASSESSMENT SUBMISSION PENALTY: Unless a Special Consideration request has been submitted and approved, a 5% penalty (of the total possible mark) will be applied each day an assessment is not submitted, up until the 7th day (including weekends). After the 7th day, a mark of 0 (zero) will be awarded even if the assessment is submitted. Submission time for all written assessments is set at 11.55 pm. A 1-hour grace period is provided to students who experience a technical issue. This late penalty will apply to non-timed sensitive assessment (incl essays, reports, posters, portfolios, journals, recordings, etc.). Late submission of time-sensitive tasks (such as quizzes, tests/exams, performance assessments/presentations, scheduled practical assessments/labs, etc.) will only be addressed by the unit convenor in a Special Consideration application. The Special Consideration outcome may result in a new question or topic.

 

IMPORTANT NOTE ON MARKS:

Grading decisions for each assessment task will be moderated against the set criteria and standards before task results are released.

Assessment Tasks

Name Weighting Hurdle Due
Weekly quiz 35% No Sundays, 23:59, Weeks 2-6, 8-12
Artefact study 30% No Monday, 8 April, 23:59
Final examination 35% No Examination Period

Weekly quiz

Assessment Type 1: Quiz/Test
Indicative Time on Task 2: 20 hours
Due: Sundays, 23:59, Weeks 2-6, 8-12
Weighting: 35%

 

10 short, weekly questions related to unit content.

 
On successful completion you will be able to:
  • Acquire knowledge of the archaeological discipline
  • Identify fundamental developments, theories and techniques of archaeology
  • Communicate archaeological information and concepts through oral, visual and written formats

Artefact study

Assessment Type 1: Case study/analysis
Indicative Time on Task 2: 25 hours
Due: Monday, 8 April, 23:59
Weighting: 30%

 

Describe, analyse and document an artefact

 
On successful completion you will be able to:
  • Identify fundamental developments, theories and techniques of archaeology
  • Communicate archaeological information and concepts through oral, visual and written formats
  • Demonstrate critical thinking in reading of the literature and interpretation of the data

Final examination

Assessment Type 1: Examination
Indicative Time on Task 2: 30 hours
Due: Examination Period
Weighting: 35%

 

A two-hour examination on all course content

 
On successful completion you will be able to:
  • Acquire knowledge of the archaeological discipline
  • Analyse source material, including archaeological records, ancient sources, and modern scholarship
  • Communicate archaeological information and concepts through oral, visual and written formats
  • Demonstrate critical thinking in reading of the literature and interpretation of the data

1 If you need help with your assignment, please contact:

  • the academic teaching staff in your unit for guidance in understanding or completing this type of assessment
  • the Writing Centre for academic skills support.

2 Indicative time-on-task is an estimate of the time required for completion of the assessment task and is subject to individual variation

Delivery and Resources

DELIVERY

Lectures will be delivered in person! I like to have some discussion during the lecture, so please come along to class. I will be very happy to see you there! You will also be able to access the lectures on the Echo360 platform via our iLearn site. Lecture and Tutorial slides will be posted after the respective classes.

Tutorials for Internal students will be held face-to-face.  The tutorials will often build on our discussions from the lecture, so make sure to engage with the lectures before coming to your tutorial.

Online forums, which will replicate as far as is possible the content that we cover during the in-person tutorials, will be held each week for Online/Flexible (External) students. Please post to the forums by the Sunday of that week's lecture.  I look forward to reading your posts!

Please note that quiz questions and essay questions for the Final Exam will be taken from the readings, the lectures, and the tutorial materials.

 

RESOURCES

Required Text:

The unit readings will largely be based on this required text book. It is best if you own your own copy: • Renfrew, C. and P. Bahn, 2020. Archaeology: Theories, Methods and Practice, 8th ed. London, Thames and Hudson.

Recommended Texts:

You will find these texts helpful for this class and for those you take in the future. The Encyclopedias are good places to start your research for assessemnts and they are easily available through our library on MultiSearch:

Bahn, P., 2012. Archaeology: A Very Short Introduction, Oxford, Oxford University Press.

Gamble, C., 2015. Archaeology. The Basics, 3rd edLondon, New York, Routledge•

Pearsall, D. M., 2008. Encyclopedia of Archaeology, San Diego, Elsevier.

Smith, C., 2014. Encyclopedia of Global Archaeology, New York, Springer.

Supplemental Readings:

We will also assign or recommend supplemental readings whenever we find an article or chapter that particularly supports what we are doing in the lecture and tutorial. Please Note: All readings for class should be completed before the lecture, and must be completed before attending the tutorials and taking the quizzes. Real learning, which is based on independent, active learning, depends on coming to the tutorials prepared to discuss the material from the lecture and the readings.

UNIT WEBPAGE AND TECHNOLOGY USED AND REQUIRED

This unit will use the iLearn system (https://ilearn.mq.edu.au/login/MQ/) to communicate with the students, so you will need access to a computer and a good internet connection. Basic computer and word-processing skills are also required.

Unit Schedule

Please see our iLearn page for this unit for details on our weekly topics, readings, and tutorials/online forums. 

Policies and Procedures

Macquarie University policies and procedures are accessible from Policy Central (https://policies.mq.edu.au). Students should be aware of the following policies in particular with regard to Learning and Teaching:

Students seeking more policy resources can visit Student Policies (https://students.mq.edu.au/support/study/policies). It is your one-stop-shop for the key policies you need to know about throughout your undergraduate student journey.

To find other policies relating to Teaching and Learning, visit Policy Central (https://policies.mq.edu.au) and use the search tool.

Student Code of Conduct

Macquarie University students have a responsibility to be familiar with the Student Code of Conduct: https://students.mq.edu.au/admin/other-resources/student-conduct

Results

Results published on platform other than eStudent, (eg. iLearn, Coursera etc.) or released directly by your Unit Convenor, are not confirmed as they are subject to final approval by the University. Once approved, final results will be sent to your student email address and will be made available in eStudent. For more information visit connect.mq.edu.au or if you are a Global MBA student contact globalmba.support@mq.edu.au

Academic Integrity

At Macquarie, we believe academic integrity – honesty, respect, trust, responsibility, fairness and courage – is at the core of learning, teaching and research. We recognise that meeting the expectations required to complete your assessments can be challenging. So, we offer you a range of resources and services to help you reach your potential, including free online writing and maths support, academic skills development and wellbeing consultations.

Student Support

Macquarie University provides a range of support services for students. For details, visit http://students.mq.edu.au/support/

The Writing Centre

The Writing Centre provides resources to develop your English language proficiency, academic writing, and communication skills.

The Library provides online and face to face support to help you find and use relevant information resources. 

Student Services and Support

Macquarie University offers a range of Student Support Services including:

Student Enquiries

Got a question? Ask us via the Service Connect Portal, or contact Service Connect.

IT Help

For help with University computer systems and technology, visit http://www.mq.edu.au/about_us/offices_and_units/information_technology/help/. 

When using the University's IT, you must adhere to the Acceptable Use of IT Resources Policy. The policy applies to all who connect to the MQ network including students.

Unit information based on version 2024.01 of the Handbook