Public Archaeology is an important approach in the discipline that helps archaeologists engage with the public in a number of ways with the goal of getting the public invested in archaeology and with stewardship of the past. Education is an significant component to this approach, serving as one of the primary means of bringing archaeology to the public, and it can take many forms, ranging from K-12 classroom visits to working with local libraries to participating in large community events. The Antonio J. Waring, Jr. Center for Public Archaeology is explicitly concerned with educational programming to help achieve its goals of community engaged work. While the Waring Center has certain methods in place to educate and engage with the public, it is always important to periodically assess the effectiveness of these methods. Recently, a SWOT (Strength, Weakness, Opportunity, and Threat) analysis was conducted to analyze the different methods and strategies of the Waring Center. As with all SWOT analyses, weaknesses and threats were identified for each method. This poster focuses on proposing solutions to those weaknesses and threats. Drawing on some of the recent literature on the effective use of SWOT analyses, these solutions will make use of alternative options that can be developed by crossing the SWOT matrix to create areas of innovation. All solutions proposed are based solidly within well-defined pedagogical frameworks, especially those found within embodied learning and experiential learning, and public archaeology literature. The primary goal of this research is to determine new guidelines for best practices in Public Archaeology work, which can help inform not only the methods used at the Waring Center but also those used by other Public Archaeology programs across the globe.
Digging Deeper into Public Archaeology: Redefining Best Practices to Educational Programming in Archaeological Practice
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Student Abstract Submission