The blog is a modern tool in comparison with the field of archaeology and the tools that it usually employs. The factor of time difference may be enough to put the two at odds because archaeology does not have a history of being utilized with blogging and sometimes new and different combinations just do not work. But when blogging and archaeology are combined they create profound and useful analysis and they complement each other while covering a board spectrum of topics in short but thorough passages. I believe that this year’s W&L field school has done a great job in presenting new and old information for a public audience. Reading all the blog posts that the class has written is eye opening because it clarifies some confusion I had over sampling methods and it also points out ideas that I had not though of yet about theories on the site. I also appreciate all the detail that everyone has put into explaining how archaeology actually gets done and why the methodology we used at Morven Farm on Site D works. When someone who may have never visited a historical archaeological site reads the blogs that we have written they will gain a sense of what an archaeologist does and how they think about things. But then I would have to recommend that they get themselves out to a dig site ASAP, because it is a great experience and there is nothing quite like it.
Blogging overall is a fun way to examine topics that we talk about all day long on site. When we get a chance to sit down and sort through all the thoughts, theories, and knowledge that have been swimming in our heads and write it down for others to read it is rewarding. Upon placing our blog posts online they become basically permanently public and that is great for reaching audiences that one would not normally reach. Blogging helps to make the field school experience much more real because the assignments are not just for you to dig, read, write, and be graded. The assignments are for you to understand why and how you are digging, read and make connections to your experience, ask questions, write about what you have learned, share what you have been thinking about with a lot of people, and then be graded. Through the sharing that goes on with blogging you are held accountable for the information that you need to gather and comprehend. Technology in an academic setting can sometimes just be a hindrance but blogging has proven itself to be an aid to enhancing the experience of digging at Site D. It is a better writing assignment than an essay because it is less pressure than cramming in a paper after being in the sun for eight hours a day and being away from a library. Also blogging can be more informative than a paper could be because although the posts are shorter they are more in depth and focused on one subject of interest and they are more fun to write and I think that comes across in the end product. The readings that get assigned for class helps to inform the background knowledge that we need to make sense of the framework and history of our methodology in the field and make for a better post. Blogging also allows the blogger and digger to be proud of their work and share what the field school has been uncovering and learning while the experience is still unfolding. I for one was happy to be able to blog about what was going on at Site D while the field school was still in the midst of finding fascinating artifacts, perfecting our troweling techniques, learning to working as a team, and considering and debating upon the yet unknown past of Site D at Morven Farm. Maybe our lab buddies will help us learn more.
Comparing presenting to the visitors that we get on site including archaeologists, researchers, fellow university students, and children, blogging does not get to be as interactive but it is much more permanent. There is also the difference between what the blogger wants to talk about and what the visitor wants to learn about, and questions often times depends on how much they know about archaeology of a plow zone site to begin with. So subjects change depending on who is in charge of the discussion but there is usually overlap of interests and then a discussion can really get going. And if there is one thing that our field school likes almost as much as troweling or shovel shaving of a tenth of a foot it is talking about the field school. So please feel free to leave a comment on our blogs.
-Victoria Cervantes ’14
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