Real Anthropological Experience in Analyzing Language

The course gives students valuable hands-on research experience that mirrors real anthropological practice in analyzing language. Students design and conduct their own project, which involves collecting natural language data (e.g. recorded conversations or text messages), and learning how to transcribe, organize, and analyze these real-world interactions. Students practise applying multiple models of discourse analysis to build clear, evidence-based arguments from their data, through analytical essays and an oral presentation. The presentation component also strengthens capacity in communicating research effectively using both visual and spoken formats, an essential academic and professional skill. Class sessions are interactive, with students working on linguistic data sets in small groups to learn the models before selecting the appropriate ones for their own project. Students also gain experience with ethical research practices, including informed consent and working with human participants.

Practical Skills in Conducting Ethnographic Fieldwork

In the Doing Fieldwork in Sociocultural Anthropology course, students learn the practical skills of conducting ethnographic fieldwork through direct research experience. Students will help to conceptualize, plan, and carry out a collaborative ethnographic project and gain experience with ethnographic methods like participant observation, semi-structured interview, and qualitative data analysis. Furthermore, the research will be aimed at answering important questions about the Western community. The course will provide strong preparation for students to apply these methods and skills in their future careers.

Basic “Hands On” Training in Archaeological Methods and Techniques

This course provides students with a basic “hands on” grounding in the methods and techniques used by archaeologists to recover data in the field, and an introduction to preliminary archaeological data processing in the laboratory. The goal is to provide students with basic skills that can be used in cultural resource management (CRM) or academic research contexts. The skills taught will be applicable in a variety of contexts, with a focus on archaeological methods and techniques commonly applied in Southern Ontario. The course will be run out of the Museum of Ontario Archaeology. Classes will be taught both inside (in the Museum) and outside on an archaeological site in the London area.

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Putting It All Together: The Capstone

Students in our Honours Specialization and Specialization modules complete a senior capstone course, ANTH 4401F/G Anthropological Thinking in Practice, in which they reflect on everything they have learned and connect their training to future careers and graduate study. This course brings professional development and real-world application to the foreground, helping students articulate the practical value of their anthropology education.

Conducting Assessments for Diseases Affecting Bone and Teeth Morphology

In Paleopathology and Paleodiet students learn how diseases affect the morphology of bone and teeth. They regularly examine specimens with pathological lesions. A major assignment is the 'Differential Diagnosis' which teaches students how to reach the most likely diagnosis of the disease(s) that caused the bony changes in an individual. Students first conduct a hands-on osteobiographical assessment of a skeleton, involving the estimation of age-at-death, sex, and stature, followed by a detailed paleopathological assessment involving the identification, description, mapping, and photography of pathological lesions and congenital anomalies.

Hands-on Experience with an Unfamiliar Language

In this course students will get hands-on experience working with a native speaker collaborator of an unfamiliar to them language. They will work in a group on designing an elicitation session, collecting data, transcribing and analyzing data and relating it to typological literature. As every group work throughout the semester, they will have the opportunity to see "messy data", to make sense of it and to understand how to collect data to see how a language is structured.

In-depth Practical Study of Human Skeletal and Dental Remains

In Human Skeletal Biology students engage in weekly hands-on, practical exercises that involve in-depth study of human skeletal and dental remains. Students begin by carefully learning the shape and features of human bones and teeth, which is tested via timed "bell-ringer" exams. They move onto completing labs which teach them how to: (1) use a microscope and identify key bone and tooth cells; (2) apply techniques for age-at-death and sex estimation; (3) take measurements using calipers and an osteometric board to estimate stature and body size; (4) score non-metric traits and calculate indices commonly used in ancestry estimation; (5) analyze non-adult bones to understand skeletal and dental growth and development, and; (6) observe pathological conditions to understand how various diseases affect bone and tooth morphology. Through these labs students gain amply experience with data collection equipment and techniques, and written reporting.

Getting Ready for Graduate School

If you are a student entering your final year of studies in any Anthropology module, you have a chance to participate in a number of “crossover” graduate/undergraduate seminar-type courses with limited enrollment. This is a fantastic opportunity that will allow you to study cutting edge research in the discipline while giving you a glimpse of what graduate level studies might be like.

You can find this year’s selection of crossover courses on our Course Offerings webpage.