Southern Utah University

Course Syllabus

Southern Utah University
Southern Utah University
Fall Semester 2025

Introduction to Archaeology (Face-to-Face)

ANTH 2030-01

Course: ANTH 2030-01
Credits: 3
Term: Fall Semester 2025
Department: HSOC
CRN: 32287

Course Description

Anthropology 2030 (one of the core courses of the Anthropology minor and major) is an introduction to the methods, goals, and theoretical concepts of archaeology, with a primary focus on “Anthropological Archaeology” as practiced by North American archaeologists. As a discipline, archaeology is primarily concerned with making inferences about the lives of people who no longer walk this earth, but who have left us, in varying forms, traces of their existence. The challenge of archaeology -- a social, historical, and natural science -- is to interpret the often fragmentary and partial remains of past human societies and cultures. The enterprise of “constructing the past” and of understanding the roles that the past plays in the present is also a major concern of contemporary archaeologists. While over the course of the semester we will discuss such important events as early human migrations, the development of agriculture and pastoralism, and the emergence of state level societies, this course is not primarily designed as a World Prehistory course. We will concentrate not so much on the “course of the human past,” as on the theories and methods that archaeologists use in order to make their inferences and construct their interpretations.

Required Texts

  • Archaeology Essentials: Theories, Methods, Practice. Fifth Edition. Colin Renfrew, Paul Bahn, Elizabeth DeMarrais. 2023. Thames & Hudson. ISBN: 978-0-500-84529-5 [abbreviated RBD in the course schedule]. There’s not a huge difference between the fifth and the fourth editions if you prefer to get an earlier and cheaper edition. Just be aware that your page numbers won’t exactly match those in the schedule. Available for purchase at the SUU bookstore or for rent or purchase from your favorite online bookstore
  • I will also place various articles and short readings on our Canvas website. These will be available as either websites or .pdfs [abbreviated CANVAS in the course schedule]

Learning Outcomes

By the end of this course students should:

  • understand what Archaeology is and know something about its history as a field of study
  • understand how archaeology is related to and differs from the other Anthropology sub-disciplines
  • understand the basic concepts of archaeological research and fieldwork
  • understand what sorts of questions Archaeologists ask and how they go about investigating those questions
  • have learned about the commonality and diversity of the human material culture record over time and space
  • have honed their analytical and critical thinking skills

Course Requirements

Evaluation will be based on the following criteria:

5 short assignments, worth 25% of your grade
2 one-page write-ups on our required class fieldtrips, worth 10% of your grade
2 class debates, worth 10% of your grade
1 midterm exam, worth 25% of your grade
1 final exam, worth 25% of your grade
Class Participation, worth 5% of your grade

TOTAL = 100%

Grading Scale (not curved):

  • 93+% | = A | 73-76 | = C
  • 90-92 | = A- | 70-72 | = C-
  • 87-89 | = B+ | 67-69 | = D+
  • 83-86 | = B | 63-66 | = D
  • 80-82 | = B- | 60-62 | = D-
  • 77-79 | = C+ | 0-59 | = F
  • You are required to complete 5 homework assignments. Each assignment is worth 5 points and consists of a written 1–3-page response to an archaeological activity or problem, many of which we will work on during class. They are intended to help you synthesize course material and to generate classroom discussion.
  • In addition to the homework assignments there are 2 field trips to visit archaeological collections and sites. One of these is a visit to view archaeological collections on campus and is scheduled during regular class time. The other fieldtrip involves an off-campus trip to visit either Fremont Indian State Park in UT or the Lost City Museum and the Valley of Fire in Overton, NV. I will arrange for transportation and entrance fees to the off-campus locations. If you are unable to attend the off-campus field trip with the rest of the class due to other obligations, you may make arrangements to visit on your own time, or you may make arrangement with me to do an alternative activity. Following each fieldtrip, you are required to turn it a one-page write-up of your thoughts / reflections / questions. Each of these write-ups is worth 5 points.
  • Towards the end of the course there will be two required class debates on archaeological ethics. I will allot you time in class to prepare with the other members of your group (to be assigned by me).
  • The midterm and final examinations will be in class exams featuring combinations of multiple choice, short answer, and essay questions. The final will emphasize course material presented in the last half of class and will be held on our scheduled final exam day: Mon., Dec. 8th, 11am to 12:50 pm.

Course Outline

Course Topics and Activities (subject to change). More specific details about readings and assignments will be posted on CANVAS and handed out the first day of classes.
Week 1: Course Mechanics; What is Archaeology?
Week 2: Labor Day; Pseudoarchaeology; The History of Archaeology; HW #1 passed out
Week 3: The Nature of the Evidence; Archaeological Preservation; Fieldtrip #1
Week 4: How to Find Archaeological Sites: Survey; HW #2 passed out
Week 5: Digging up the Past: Excavation; HW #3 passed out
Week 6: How Archaeologists Tell Time: Relative and Absolute Dating
Week 7: Fall Break; Social Archaeology
Week 8: Environmental Archaeology; Archaeology of Food; HW #4 passed out
Week 9: Midterm Exam;   Archaeology of Technology
Week 10: Archaeology of Trade and Exchange; Fieldtrip #2
Week 11: Bioarchaeology; Class Debate #1
Week 12: Cognitive and Symbolic Archaeology; HW #5 passed out
Week 13: Archaeological Explanations and Theories
Week 14: Whose Past? Archaeology and the Public
Week 15: Archaeological Ethics; Archaeology as a Profession;  Debate #2: Ethics Bowl
Week 16: Final Exam

Instructor's policies on late assignments and/or makeup work

Assignments are generally due the week after they are handed out. Unless you have a verifiable and legitimate excuse (i.e. illness, injury, family emergency, university sanctioned event), I deduct 1 point per day overdue for late work. Since assignments are only worth 5 points each, you will earn no points if you submit them more than 5 days late. Most assignments can either be submitted to me in class (on paper) or uploaded to CANVAS.

Exams will be held in class, or during our university determined final exam time, on the dates listed in the course schedule. Unless you have a verifiable and legitimate excuse there are no make-up exams. If you have a valid reason for missing class, let me know as soon as possible so that we can make arrangements for you to take a make up exam on a different date.

There will be a few opportunities over the course of the semester to earn some extra credit. I will announce those as they become available. You will not be penalized for not doing extra credit, but it may help you make up some points.

Attendance Policy

If you know that you will be missing a class, please notify me as soon as possible. I realize that life happens and that sometimes it's hard to get to class. I allow two "Freebie absences," with no explanation necessary, over the course of the semester. If, however, there is a repeated pattern of unexcused absences, your participation grade (largely based on your attendance and participation in class activities) will suffer.

Course Fees

Courses in the College of Humanities and Social Sciences come with a $4/credit hour course fee. This modest sum ensures that we have funds to purchase materials for classroom activities, go on fieldtrips, and pay guest speakers for courses such as this one.

Course Etiquette

Course Etiquette:

  • Please refrain from using your cell phones, tablets, laptops, and other electronic/digital media in class unless you demonstrably need said device for learning purposes (i.e. taking notes, sharing an oral presentation for the class with classmates). They are a distraction for me, for your classmates, and for yourselves. I have found a remarkable correlation over the years: those students with headphones on and those students who text (and those who do both simultaneously) tend to perform more poorly than those that do not.
  • When emailing me please use my work email (deane@suu.edu) rather than the CANVAS messaging system (which is clunky and which I don't check as often.). Be sure to use the subject line to indicate which class you are in and what your name is (i.e. ANTH 2030, Jane Smith). 
  • Please feel free to ask questions and to express your opinions and thoughts in class, but please do so in a respectful and polite manner.

Instructor's Policy on the Use and Abuse of AI (Artificial Intelligence) in this Course

Archaeology is a very hands on kind of discipline and as such does not (yet) lend itself well to AI, therefore I would prefer you did not use AI to complete assignments, write your papers, or impersonate you online.  I don't mind if you use AI to generate some initial ideas for a paper (provided you tell me that you did so and that you then 'translate' the information into your own words). Use of AI to 'clean up/edit' assignments also seems acceptable. If, however, you use AI to completely write your assignments, that strikes me as no different than plagiarism and I will treat it as academic dishonesty. I hope that you will enjoy interacting with and learning from your fellow humans in this course. I want to hear your thoughts and perspectives, not Grok's.

ADA Statement

Students with medical, psychological, learning, or other disabilities desiring academic adjustments, accommodations, or auxiliary aids will need to contact the Disability Resource Center, located in Room 206F of the Sharwan Smith Center or by phone at (435) 865-8042. The Disability Resource Center determines eligibility for and authorizes the provision of services.

If your instructor requires attendance, you may need to seek an ADA accommodation to request an exception to this attendance policy. Please contact the Disability Resource Center to determine what, if any, ADA accommodations are reasonable and appropriate.

Academic Credit

According to the federal definition of a Carnegie credit hour: A credit hour of work is the equivalent of approximately 60 minutes of class time or independent study work. A minimum of 45 hours of work by each student is required for each unit of credit. Credit is earned only when course requirements are met. One (1) credit hour is equivalent to 15 contact hours of lecture, discussion, testing, evaluation, or seminar, as well as 30 hours of student homework. An equivalent amount of work is expected for laboratory work, internships, practica, studio, and other academic work leading to the awarding of credit hours. Credit granted for individual courses, labs, or studio classes ranges from 0.5 to 15 credit hours per semester.

Academic Freedom

SUU is operated for the common good of the greater community it serves. The common good depends upon the free search for truth and its free exposition. Academic Freedom is the right of faculty to study, discuss, investigate, teach, and publish. Academic Freedom is essential to these purposes and applies to both teaching and research.

Academic Freedom in the realm of teaching is fundamental for the protection of the rights of the faculty member and of you, the student, with respect to the free pursuit of learning and discovery. Faculty members possess the right to full freedom in the classroom in discussing their subjects. They may present any controversial material relevant to their courses and their intended learning outcomes, but they shall take care not to introduce into their teaching controversial materials which have no relation to the subject being taught or the intended learning outcomes for the course.

As such, students enrolled in any course at SUU may encounter topics, perspectives, and ideas that are unfamiliar or controversial, with the educational intent of providing a meaningful learning environment that fosters your growth and development. These parameters related to Academic Freedom are included in SUU Policy 6.6.

Academic Misconduct

Scholastic honesty is expected of all students. Dishonesty will not be tolerated and will be prosecuted to the fullest extent (see SUU Policy 6.33). You are expected to have read and understood the current SUU student conduct code (SUU Policy 11.2) regarding student responsibilities and rights, the intellectual property policy (SUU Policy 5.52), information about procedures, and what constitutes acceptable behavior.

Please Note: The use of websites or services that sell essays is a violation of these policies; likewise, the use of websites or services that provide answers to assignments, quizzes, or tests is also a violation of these policies. Regarding the use of Generative Artificial Intelligence (AI), you should check with your individual course instructor.

Emergency Management Statement

In case of an emergency, the University's Emergency Notification System (ENS) will be activated. Students are encouraged to maintain updated contact information using the link on the homepage of the mySUU portal. In addition, students are encouraged to familiarize themselves with the Emergency Response Protocols posted in each classroom. Detailed information about the University's emergency management plan can be found at https://www.suu.edu/emergency.

HEOA Compliance Statement

For a full set of Higher Education Opportunity Act (HEOA) compliance statements, please visit https://www.suu.edu/heoa. The sharing of copyrighted material through peer-to-peer (P2P) file sharing, except as provided under U.S. copyright law, is prohibited by law; additional information can be found at https://my.suu.edu/help/article/1096/heoa-compliance-plan.

You are also expected to comply with policies regarding intellectual property (SUU Policy 5.52) and copyright (SUU Policy 5.54).

Mandatory Reporting

University policy (SUU Policy 5.60) requires instructors to report disclosures received from students that indicate they have been subjected to sexual misconduct/harassment. The University defines sexual harassment consistent with Federal Regulations (34 C.F.R. Part 106, Subpart D) to include quid pro quo, hostile environment harassment, sexual assault, dating violence, domestic violence, and stalking. When students communicate this information to an instructor in-person, by email, or within writing assignments, the instructor will report that to the Title IX Coordinator to ensure students receive support from the Title IX Office. A reporting form is available at https://cm.maxient.com/reportingform.php?SouthernUtahUniv

Non-Discrimination Statement

SUU is committed to fostering an inclusive community of lifelong learners and believes our university's encompassing of different views, beliefs, and identities makes us stronger, more innovative, and better prepared for the global society.

SUU does not discriminate on the basis of race, religion, color, national origin, citizenship, sex (including sex discrimination and sexual harassment), sexual orientation, gender identity, age, ancestry, disability status, pregnancy, pregnancy-related conditions, genetic information, military status, veteran status, or other bases protected by applicable law in employment, treatment, admission, access to educational programs and activities, or other University benefits or services.

SUU strives to cultivate a campus environment that encourages freedom of expression from diverse viewpoints. We encourage all to dialogue within a spirit of respect, civility, and decency.

For additional information on non-discrimination, please see SUU Policy 5.27 and/or visit https://www.suu.edu/nondiscrimination.

Pregnancy

Students who are or become pregnant during this course may receive reasonable modifications to facilitate continued access and participation in the course. Pregnancy and related conditions are broadly defined to include pregnancy, childbirth, termination of pregnancy, lactation, related medical conditions, and recovery. To obtain reasonable modifications, please make a request to title9@suu.edu. To learn more visit: https://www.suu.edu/titleix/pregnancy.html.

Disclaimer Statement

Information contained in this syllabus, other than the grading, late assignments, makeup work, and attendance policies, may be subject to change with advance notice, as deemed appropriate by the instructor.