Last modified: 27 Oct 2023 11:16
This course examines museums as sites for the production and dissemination of anthropological knowledge. Through seminars, museum visits, and access to the resources of the University’s Museums and Special Collections, students will consider the legacies of historic collecting practices and the challenges of ethically engaging with collections in the present. Students will gain experience of conducting research in a museum environment, learn about the limits of material culture as an anthropological data source, and engage with theoretical and methodological frameworks for working with collections. They will also become familiar with how museums are taking on contemporary challenges, such decolonisation, climate change, funding crises, etc. Assessment is based on an Artefact Study Portfolio, and an essay in which students reflect upon the themes of the course as a whole.
| Study Type | Undergraduate | Level | 4 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Session | First Sub Session | Credit Points | 30 credits (15 ECTS credits) |
| Campus | Aberdeen | Sustained Study | No |
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One or more of these courses have a limited number of places. Priority access will be given to students for whom this course is compulsory. Please refer to the Frequently Asked Questions for more details on this process.
Museum anthropology brings together professional practices of curation with ethnographic and cultural questions, often by drawing on historic collections to consider contemporary challenges. Museum anthropologists view museums as field sites, as contested spaces where relations of power are played out in public-facing galleries and behind the scenes. Students on this course will receive training in the use of material culture for anthropological research and interpretation. They will be encouraged to relate their research with the University’s collections to current issues informing the contemporary practice of museum anthropology. Themes to be covered may include: how artefacts are defined and valued in different contexts; how meaning is negotiated in exhibitions; relationships between museums and Indigenous peoples; digital technologies and 'knowledge repatriation'; traditional care and curation; repatriation and questions of ownership; museums and decolonisation; museums and sustainability.
Information on contact teaching time is available from the course guide.
| Assessment Type | Summative | Weighting | 15 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Assessment Weeks | Feedback Weeks | |||
| Feedback |
1000 Words. |
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| Knowledge Level | Thinking Skill | Outcome |
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| Assessment Type | Summative | Weighting | 25 | |
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| Assessment Weeks | Feedback Weeks | |||
| Feedback |
1500 Words. |
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| Knowledge Level | Thinking Skill | Outcome |
|---|---|---|
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| Assessment Type | Summative | Weighting | 40 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Assessment Weeks | Feedback Weeks | |||
| Feedback |
2000 words. |
Word Count | 2000 | |
| Knowledge Level | Thinking Skill | Outcome |
|---|---|---|
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| Assessment Type | Summative | Weighting | 20 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Assessment Weeks | Feedback Weeks | |||
| Feedback | ||||
| Knowledge Level | Thinking Skill | Outcome |
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There are no assessments for this course.
| Knowledge Level | Thinking Skill | Outcome |
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| Factual | Remember | ILO’s for this course are available in the course guide. |
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