Anthropology (ANTH) 377

Overview

ANTH 377 Ancient Cultures of North America is designed to provide the student with an understanding of the precontact cultures of North America, from the first peopling of the continent to the arrival of Europeans. The course has three major objectives:

1. an appreciation for the dynamic field of North American archaeology, particularly the gathering of information and interpretation of past cultures;
2. an understanding of the general historical sequence of North America’s past and an appreciation for the diversity of the peoples and cultures that thrived here;
3. the ability to evaluate the ways in which contemporary archaeologists consider and communicate with other stakeholders in North America’s past.

Outline

Part I Introducing North American Archaeology

• Unit 1 Nature and Practice of North American Archaeology
• Unit 2 Culture and Environment

Part II The North American Past

• Unit 3 Peopling of the Americas
• Unit 4 Foragers of the North
• Unit 5 Complex Hunter-Gatherers on the Northwest Coast
• Unit 6 Rivers, Roots, and Rabbits
• Unit 7 Diversity and Complexity in California
• Unit 8 Mobility, Flexibility, and Persistence in the Great Basin
• Unit 9 Foragers and Villages of the Southwest
• Unit 10 Bison Hunters and Horticulturalists
• Unit 11 Tribes and Chiefdoms in the Southeast
• Unit 12 Foragers and Farmers of the Midwest
• Unit 13 Fishing, Foraging, and Farming in the Northeast

Part III The Future of North American Archaeology

• Unit 14 North American Archaeology for the Twenty-First Century

Evaluation

To receive credit for ANTH 377, you must achieve a minimum grade of “D” (50 percent) on both the mid-term and final examinations, and an overall grade of “D” (50 percent) for the entire course. The weighting of the composite grade is as follows:

Map quiz	Essay assignment	Midterm examination	Research paper outline	Research paper	Final examination	Total
5%	15%	25%	10%	20%	25%	100%

To learn more about assignments and examinations, please refer to Athabasca University's online Calendar.

Course Materials

Textbooks

Other materials

Course Manual, Student Manual and Digital Reading Room found online

Challenge for Credit Course Overview

The Challenge for Credit process allows students to demonstrate that they have acquired a command of the general subject matter, knowledge, intellectual and/or other skills that would normally be found in a university level course.

Full information for the Challenge for Credit can be found in the Undergraduate Calendar.

• Undergraduate Challenge for Credit Policy
• Undergraduate Challenge for Credit Procedures

Challenge Evaluation

Students must complete a Map Quiz, an Essay Assignment, a Research Paper Outline, a Research Paper, a Midterm and a Final Examination. The student must write the exam, in two parts, on the same day or on two consecutive days. The weighting is as follows:

Map quiz	Essay assignment	Midterm examination	Research paper outline	Research paper	Final examination	Total
5%	15%	25%	10%	20%	25%	100%

To receive credit for the ANTH 377 challenge registration, you must achieve a grade of at least “D” (50 per cent) on the midterm and final examination, and an overall grade of “D” (50 per cent) for the entire course.

Undergraduate Challenge for Credit Course Registration Form

• Challenge for Credit Form