Inclusive, Accessible, Archaeology

Consultant to the Project: Professor Keith Bright

Started in January 2005, this project addresses the dual issues of disability and transferable skills in the teaching of archaeological fieldwork. The aims of the project are to increase the awareness of disability issues in Archaeology, to improve the integration of disability in fieldwork teaching, and to increase students’ awareness of their development of transferable skills for the transition to employability.

The Project Team brings together the expertise of archaeology subject specialists with professionals in the design and management of Inclusive Environments. This unique blend of skills will ensure the team are able to analyse archaeological activities, skills and environments and, by the end of the project, to have:

• Assessed issues surrounding disability and fieldwork and identified good practice in the teaching of archaeological field activities;
• Characterised archaeological field activities and environments according to their physical and psychological demands;
• Developed, tested and evaluated a self-assessment tool kit for physical and psychological abilities in fieldwork;
• Increased students’ awareness of their development of transferable skills through a process of self-assessment and its application to careers management skills;
• Disseminated good practice and a new model for self-assessment of abilities to consortium departments and universities, 20 Archaeology subject providers, and to the professional and amateur sectors of Archaeology.
• Disseminated the findings to the general populations of disabled and non-disabled people.