Schools and Public Archaeology: Igniting a Commitment to Heritage Preservation

Summary

Schools are a natural and potentially fruitful venue for public archaeology efforts; natural, because cultural transmission is a fundamental purpose of schooling, and potentially fruitful, given the nearly 50 million students currently enrolled in K-12 schools (National Center for Education Statistics, 2015). Schools are also a target audience of enormous importance to public archaeology, largely because the goals of heritage preservation depend on the formation of durable habits of mind and commitments that begin developing in youth. Of course, after entering the school-house door, appreciation for archaeology and the preservation of heritage sites must compete in a congested arena of interests. Acknowledging the challenges, this paper focuses on the opportunities for public archaeology in pre-college education (linkages to content standards, inquiry/problem solving, and service learning) and in teacher preparation (teaching methods and materials).

This Resource is Part of the Following Collections

• Society for American Archaeology 81st Annual Meeting, Orlando, FL (2016)   •
• Public Engagement and Education: Developing Heritage Stewardship

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