10th August 2006, 01:35 PM
I am all in favour of volunteer and amateur groups, whether societies. community archaeology scenes, semi-commercial fieldschools or whatever, carrying out research and fieldwork including excavation on sites that would not otherwise be investigated and recorded through the PPG16 and similar procedures, i.e. not threatened by development and thus no developer to finance it. This work may be in repsonse to a non-development threat or pure research. Naturally the work must be carried out in a appropriate manner to the same criteria as commercial work.
As discussed above however I see no place for the volunteer (in other words an unpaid worker) in the commercial sector.
Perhaps the question of training and universities is slightly off-topic, but has been discussed several times before. Certainly I feel that unis can do more, but in my opinion this should be more in the field of CRM type modules, which need to be taken more seriously and much more weighting - to continue over all three years for a start. I don't really see how unis can train circuit diggers, nor indeed why they should. It is for the industry to contribute to training its own staff - archaeology is certainly not alone in a short sighted abandonment of the concept in the scramble to win tenders however.
We owe the dead nothing but the truth.
As discussed above however I see no place for the volunteer (in other words an unpaid worker) in the commercial sector.
Perhaps the question of training and universities is slightly off-topic, but has been discussed several times before. Certainly I feel that unis can do more, but in my opinion this should be more in the field of CRM type modules, which need to be taken more seriously and much more weighting - to continue over all three years for a start. I don't really see how unis can train circuit diggers, nor indeed why they should. It is for the industry to contribute to training its own staff - archaeology is certainly not alone in a short sighted abandonment of the concept in the scramble to win tenders however.
We owe the dead nothing but the truth.