@article {9498,
	title = {Teaching Complexity and Ambiguity in an Introductory World Prehistory Course},
	journal = {Canadian Journal of Archaeology},
	volume = {37},
	year = {2013},
	pages = {001-020},
	abstract = {<p>Teaching an introductory-level archaeology and world prehistory course in a university is challenging because the instructor must balance the need for comprehensive coverage against the risk of superficiality that would impede student understanding of the discipline. This paper is a personal account of the use of an interactive role-playing laboratory exercise to teach archaeological field and laboratory methods in a context of hypothesis testing. The interaction between theory and research design, and the potential influence of the archaeologists\&rsquo; intellectual history on interpretation are strongly emphasized. The topics explored are the \&ldquo;Neanderthal problem\&rdquo; and the origins of complex cognition, interrelated issues which are subject to currently unresolved debate. This exercise has demonstrated that first-year students are capable of understanding and manipulating complex and occasionally conflicting data to produce an effective scientific argument. Although this has been a successful pedagogical technique, the labor cost to the instructor and the teaching assistants is very high.</p>},
	author = {Michael S. Bisson}
}
