Place-based education is a method of teaching that uses exploration of a local environment or community through hands-on, real-world learning to foster a strong connection to community. This model emphasizes co-creation of knowledge throughout the learning process and has been applied to a variety of disciplines, including social and natural sciences. Taught through place-based approaches in both the classroom and in the field, archaeology can provide a curriculum that connects students to their environment and local heritage. The Mercill Archaeology Center in Jackson, Wyoming, seeks to address an “educational resources gap” in the local community by offering place-based programming for students. The programs focused on the archaeology of the Linn Site and operated in two formats: a short (five-day) camp for elementary-age students and a more intensive (semester-long) course with gifted and talented students from the local middle school. Students participated in introductory cultural history and archaeological classes before joining archaeologists in active research. By highlighting these programs as case studies, this article will explore the successes and challenges of place-based field programming as part of active archaeological research. It is hoped that these models will provide guidance for other community-oriented archaeological projects seeking to implement a place-based approach.
In August and September, 2014, two eight- day archaeological surveys were conducted by the Jackson Hole Historical Society and Museum in Caribou-Targhee National Forest and Grand Teton National Park. This project, the inaugural season of the Teton Archaeological Project, investigated high-altitude passes, basins, and ice patches for prehistoric archaeological sites. In total, during the 2014 season 28 archaeological sites were recorded ranging from Paleoindian (9,000 BP) to Late-Prehistoric (1,000 BP) in age. The results of this field season investigation provide an enlightened understanding of prehistoric life in the high Tetons and will offer a solid foundation for future archaeological surveys and research questions.
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