Exploring academic research papers - faculty

The classes are conducted in the form of a workshop, during which academic research papers are read aloud by the participants and commented on by the entire group. The texts, listed in the Bibliography (see below), will be provided to the participants in electronic form.

The classes are conducted in the form of a workshop, during which academic research papers are read aloud by the participants and commented on by the entire group. The texts, listed in the Bibliography (see below), will be provided to the participants in electronic form.

All texts read in class are broadly concerned with archaeology. However, they also represent a variety of related disciplines: zooarchaeology, epigraphy, anthropology, architecture, and more. Some address fundamental issues of archaeological research, such as methodology, excavation techniques, survey, and the study of finds. The geographic and chronological span of the selected papers is deliberately broad, from the dawn of mankind until early modern times and from Italy to Australia, in order to cater to the students’ varied scientific interests. However, the main selection criteria were outstanding language, good structure and compelling argument.

The course is particularly recommended for students signed up for the course “Scientific Writing in Archaeology”, but it may also be of use for students wishing to improve their understanding of academic discourse, to learn about the structure and style of academic texts, and for those seeking to make their own papers more compelling.

Command of English at B2 level or higher is required.

M. MacKinnon, “High on the Hog: Linking Zooarchaeological, Literary, and Artistic Data for Pig Breeds in Roman Italy”, American Journal of Archaeology 105.4 (2001), 649-673

M. Sommer, “Palmyra and Hatra. ‘Civic’ and ‘tribal’ institutions at the Near-Eastern steppe frontier”, in: E. S. Gruen, ed., Cultural Borrowings and Ethnic Appropriations in Antiquity, Stuttgart 2005, 285‒96

L. K. Blue, “Chapter 3. Methodology”, in: L. K. Blue, E. Khalil, eds, A Multidisciplinary Approach to Alexandria's Economic Past: The Lake Mareotis Research Project, Oxford 2011, 29-36

R. A. Foley, “Speciation, extinction and climatic change in hominid evolution”, Journal of Human Evolution 26.4 (1994), 275-289

E. Higginbotham, “Excavation Techniques in Historical Archaeology”, Australian Journal of Historical Archaeology 3 (1985), 8-14

B. V. Pentcheva, “Hagia Sophia and Multisensory Aesthetics”, GESTA 50/2 (2011), 93-111

A. Wilson, “Archaeological Evidence for Textile Production and Dyeing in Roman North Africa”, in: C. Alfaro, J. P. Wild, B. Costa, eds, Purpurae Vestes. I Symposium Internacional sobre Textiles y Tintes del Mediterraneo en epoca romana, Valencia 2004, 155-164

I. Uytterhoeven, I. Blom-Böer, “New Light on the Egyptian Labyrinth: Evidence from a Survey at Hawara”, The Journal of Egyptian Archaeology 88 (2002), 111-120

- Familiarity with the academic register, as well as the language and style of research papers in Archaeology

- Ability to discern between fact, hypothesis and interpretation in academic discourse

- Ability to distinguish between different structural elements of academic papers (introduction, presentation of sources and data, discussion, conclusions, references, illustrations, etc.) and identify their function

- Ability to spot phrases, words and structures that may be useful in the student’s own writing

Assessment is based on attendance and active participation in the classes. Two absences unsupported by a doctor’s note are allowed; more absences will result in a lower grade.