"Another Brick in the Wall" - Archaeological Outreach in Schools as a Political Act
Channel: Recording Archaeology
Date: 2017-04-23

Education in the UK is a highly politicised field, not least recently with the proposed revival of grammar schools, the axing of archaeology and other A Levels, and the rise of Academy and Free Schools. The place of archaeology in education is primarily reserved for museum visits and primary school history projects. What can the future hold for this model in the face of sweeping cuts to museum services and pressures on schools to cut costs and focus on prioritising boosting levels in maths and science above all else?
In a political landscape where experts are depicted as elitist, interfering and irrelevant, it becomes a radical act to educate young people in our expertise and show its relevance to their lives. An exploration of isotope analysis via studying the Amesbury Archer becomes a lesson in why immigration brings valuable skills and ideas to their new homes, and how such immigrants are held in high regard for doing so. Sessions on looking at human diet during different time periods in history and prehistory become discussions on climate change and resource management. In this paper I will argue that the role of archaeologists should be an active one. As professionals 6 TAG 2 0 1 6
and academics we have a broad range of interdisciplinary skills that, through innovative and carefully developed outreach schemes, can both inspire politically engaged learning in young people, and boost the profile of archaeology as a career path for all.

Penelope Foreman, Bournemouth University