The Excavation is the Classroom

Abstract

The last decade has seen a steady rise in the use of handheld computing devices like laptops and tablet PCs in higher education, so much so that the 2011 Horizon Report lists mobile computing as a top technology to watch in the coming year or two (Johnson et al. 2011:12). When mobile tablet PCs are equipped with scientific visualization software, classes can be taught outside, field methods demonstrated and data collected in real-time using the table PC pen. The technology of mobile computing has broad application in the field sciences (Armstrong and Bennett 2005), and archaeology is a terrific example of a discipline that can easily adapt to using mobile computing (Tripcevich 2010). Field-based mapping and data collection allow for the discovery of patterns while in the field (Clarke 2004; Searcy and Ure 2008). Data are instantly validated and verified due to the contextual awareness of the researcher, which facilitates spotting errors and gaps in data collection at a point when it is still possible to make corrections or to modify research plans (McPherron and Dibble 2003: Searcy and Ure 2008; Tripcevich 2010). Mobile devices for data collection will have a significant influence on higher education instruction (Armstrong and Bennett 2005), and many scientific disciplines have introduced tablet PCs into the field-based curriculum to promising results (e.g., Benson et al. 2006; Manone et al. 2008; Menking and Stewart 2007; Neumann and Kutis 2006; Tripcevich 2004a; Whitmeyer et al. 2010).