In recognition of World Anthropology Day, Mercer University partnered with Central High School to launch a pilot program, “Anthropology 101 in 2 Hours,” which introduced students to the subject of anthropology.
World Anthropology Day, celebrated on the third Thursday in February, aims to share the field of anthropology with the larger public. During the Feb. 25 program, Mercer students taught interactive lessons to juniors and seniors in Central’s International Baccalaureate program.
The program gave Central students the opportunity to learn about anthropology’s four sub-fields: linguistic, cultural and biological anthropology, as well as archaeology, and learn about anthropology’s role in understanding humanity’s past and present.
Programs like this are what help enhance International Baccalaureate and fine arts magnet schools like Central, said Principal Dr. Keturah Reese.
“This partnership allows our students to step confidently into spaces that expand their thinking, fuel their ambitions, and spark meaningful relationships,” she said. “I look forward to watching the exciting connections and future opportunities that will grow from this experience.”
Taylor Parker, a junior double-majoring in global development studies and anthropology, led a lesson on archaeology and described the various methods of data collection used in archaeology, such as land surveys, excavation, stratigraphy and map-making. She also gave students an interactive activity where students guessed the function and importance of tool artifacts based on hints about the regions, biomes, and time periods they were found in.
Parker is president of Mercer’s Anthropology Club and, along with Latoya Bartley, Megan Fachisthers and Keana McKee, was among the student facilitators who presented their independent research at the Society for Applied Anthropology annual conference March 17-21 in Albuquerque, New Mexico. Parker said exposing students to anthropology before college can introduce them to important concepts in understanding others.
“A basic component of anthropology is cultural relativism, which teaches students to challenge any biased thinking toward their culture or society that they may deem superior to another,” she said. “Cultural relativism reminds students to be curious about people and groups from all walks of life and asks them to be empathetic. Even if a student does not want to study anthropology or other social sciences in college, I think its teachings and elements are foundational to all learners.”
Parker said she hopes students felt more interested in studying anthropology.
“Teaching the students about anthropology made me wish I learned more about anthropology in high school myself. In high school, I had an interest in anthropology but didn’t know where to start,” she said. “Again, anthropology is such a vast field and challenges people to expand their ways of thinking and encourages students to be free thinkers. I hope that that day opened up new avenues for the students, and I hope it taught them to stay intellectually curious.”
Fachisthers, a senior triple-majoring in global health studies, anthropology and Spanish, helped lead a lesson on how race developed as a social construct across cultures and time periods. During the lesson, students learned about the difference between ethnicity and race and held discussions where students gave honest feedback on how they viewed race.
Fachisthers said the Central students asked thoughtful questions and remained engaged throughout the lesson. She hopes learning about anthropology inspires the students to see the value of studying it in the future.
“Anthropology teaches you the importance of introspection and self-reflection. It is less of a traditional discipline and more of a way of life. I think anthropology is just as important for someone who wants to be a teacher as it is for someone who wants to be a doctor,” she said. “Regardless of where students want to go or what they want to do, anthropology teaches invaluable skills drawn from both the humanities and the social sciences.”
Dr. Amy Nichols-Belo, associate professor of anthropology and global health studies and chair of the International and Global Studies Department, said Central students who attended the event overwhelmingly felt the program would appeal to their peers and were interested in taking an anthropology course in college.
In a reflection about the program, one student wrote, “I learned about a few perspectives from other countries/places, and it encouraged me to be more open to different beliefs, cultures and perspectives. I learned about some factors that influence the evolution, development or even the loss of different languages as well as how important language is to the preservation of culture.”
Other students described learning about “the significance of understanding race, culture and how to effectively communicate” and how to use information about the ancestry and culture of different populations to make educated guesses about the past.
