AQA 7016 SP 2017

DRAFT SPECIFICATION

AS
ARCHAEOLOGY

DRAFT 7016

Specification
For teaching from September 2017 onwards
For AS exams in 2018 onwards
Version 0.1 7 July 2016


DRAFT SPECIFICATION


AS Archaeology DRAFT 7016. AS exams June 2018 onwards. Version 0.1 7 July 2016

Contents
1 Introduction

5

1.1 Why choose AQA for AS Archaeology
1.2 Support and resources to help you teach
1.3 Draft specification

DRAFT SPECIFICATION

2 Specification at a glance
2.1 Subject content

2.2 Assessments

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3 Subject content

9

3.1 Archaeology in practice
3.2 Themes in world archaeology: depth study
3.3 Themes in world archaeology: breadth studies

4 Scheme of assessment
4.1 Aims
4.2 Assessment objectives
4.3 Assessment weightings

5 General administration
5.1 Entries and codes
5.2 Overlaps with other qualifications
5.3 Awarding grades and reporting results
5.4 Re-sits and shelf life
5.5 Previous learning and prerequisites
5.6 Access to assessment: diversity and inclusion

5.7 Working with AQA for the first time
5.8 Private candidates

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DRAFT SPECIFICATION
Are you using the latest version of this specification?
•
•

You will always find the most up-to-date version of this specification on our website at
aqa.org.uk/7016
We will write to you if there are significant changes to the specification.

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AS Archaeology DRAFT 7016. AS exams June 2018 onwards. Version 0.1 7 July 2016

1 Introduction
1.1 Why choose AQA for AS Archaeology

DRAFT SPECIFICATION

Archaeology is a great way to explore the past. It also helps develop valuable skills to ensure your
students stand out from the crowd. Higher education and businesses value the independent
research, teamwork, leadership and project management skills you’ll help your students to
develop.
You can find out about all our Archaeology qualifications at aqa.org.uk/archaeology

1.1.1 A specification designed for you and your students
This new qualification retains much of the content that we know you and your students enjoy.
Topics are clearly and logically structured and learning includes:
• an understanding of the nature of archaeological evidence and what examining such evidence
can tell us about past human societies
• an understanding and practical application of archaeological techniques, including
contemporary techniques
• the practice of responsible archaeology
• how to analyse archaeological material and data.

1.1.2 Clear, well structured exams, accessible for all
To enable your students to show their breadth of knowledge and understanding, we’ve created a
simple and straightforward structure and layout for our papers, using a mixture of question styles.

1.2 Support and resources to help you teach
We’ve worked with experienced teachers to provide you with a range of resources that will help
you confidently plan, teach and prepare for exams.

1.2.1 Teaching resources
Visit aqa.org.uk/7016 to see all our teaching resources. They include:
• specimen papers and mark schemes to show the standards required and how your students’
papers will be marked
• sample schemes of work and teacher guides to help you plan your course with confidence
• a phone and email based subject team to support you in the delivery of the specification
• training courses to help you deliver AQA archaeology qualifications

1.2.2 Preparing for exams
Visit aqa.org.uk/7016 for everything you need to prepare for our exams, including:
• past papers, mark schemes and examiners’ reports
• specimen papers and mark schemes for new courses

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• Exampro: a searchable bank of past AQA exam questions
• example student answers with examiner commentaries.

1.2.3 Analyse your students' results with Enhanced Results Analysis
(ERA)
Find out which questions were the most challenging, how the results compare to previous years

and where your students need to improve. ERA, our free online results analysis tool, will help you
see where to focus your teaching. Register at aqa.org.uk/era

1.2.4 Keep your skills up-to-date with professional development
Wherever you are in your career, there’s always something new to learn. As well as subject
specific training, we offer a range of courses to help boost your skills.
• Improve your teaching skills in areas including differentiation, teaching literacy and meeting
Ofsted requirements.
• Prepare for a new role with our leadership and management courses.
You can attend a course at venues around the country, in your school or online – whatever suits
your needs and availability. Find out more at coursesandevents.aqa.org.uk

1.2.5 Help and support
Visit our website for information, guidance, support and resources at aqa.org.uk/7016
If you'd like us to share news and information about this qualification, sign up for emails and
updates at aqa.org.uk/from-2017
Alternatively, you can call or email our subject team direct.
E:
T: 0161 958 3861

1.3 Draft specification
This draft qualification has not yet been accredited by Ofqual. It is published to enable teachers to
have early sight of our proposed approach to AS Archaeology. Further changes may be required
and no assurance can be given that this proposed qualification will be made available in its current
form, or that it will be accredited in time for first teaching in September 2017 and first award in
August 2018.

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DRAFT SPECIFICATION

For information about results, including maintaining standards over time, grade boundaries and our
post-results services, visit aqa.org.uk/results


AS Archaeology DRAFT 7016. AS exams June 2018 onwards. Version 0.1 7 July 2016

2 Specification at a glance
This qualification is linear. Linear means that students will sit all their exams at the end of the
course.

2.1 Subject content

DRAFT SPECIFICATION

Core content
1. Archaeology in practice (page 9)
2. Themes in world archaeology: depth study (page 13)
3. Themes in world archaeology: breadth studies (page 14)

2.2 Assessments
Paper 1
What's assessed
• Section A: Archaeology in practice
• Section B: Themes in world archaeology: depth studies
• Section C: Themes in world archaeology: breadth studies
How it's assessed
• Written exam: 3 hours
• 100 marks
• 100% of AS

Questions
A combination of multiple choice, short response and extended writing questions.

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DRAFT SPECIFICATION
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AS Archaeology DRAFT 7016. AS exams June 2018 onwards. Version 0.1 7 July 2016

3 Subject content
3.1 Archaeology in practice
This section of the specification has been updated to take account of the dramatic impact of
scientific techniques, particularly in reconnaissance and post-excavation and dating, and the
impact of new discoveries on our understanding of human evolution.

DRAFT SPECIFICATION

3.1.1 The nature and types of archaeological evidence
This section underpins all other parts of the specification. Students should be familiar with the
range of artefacts, features and environmental evidence most commonly encountered in the
archaeological record and which are used to construct accounts of past human activity. They
should be able to explain and illustrate their value and limitations both generally and in given
scenarios. They should be familiar with the evidence available in a range of different types of sites
including burials (including human remains), buildings and other structures, sites and settlements,
botanical and faunal remains and landscapes.
Students should understand that the principle of stratification is central to all archaeological
investigation and the key concept of archaeological context (referring to the layer in which

archaeological material is found).
Students should become able to understand and translate the recording formats found in site
reports. These include maps, plans, sections and matrices, photographs and drawings, data tables
for ecofacts and artefacts, summative dating tables and written reports.
Students should understand the value of secondary sources used by archaeologists, particularly
for desktop surveys. They should be able to understand and translate from maps, plans,
photographs (including aerial photography), illustrations, historic accounts and records and written
sources.

3.1.2 Site formation processes
The archaeological record is never static and archaeologists need to understand the processes
which shape the evidence from the past which is available to study. These are termed
transformation or formation processes.
• Transformation processes:
• formation processes
• post-depositional processes
• recovery processes
• How material entered the archaeological record:
• behavioural processes ‒ how was material acquired and used by humans
• depositional processes ‒ how was it discarded or became buried
• curation and structured deposition.
• The natural (N-transforms) and cultural (C-transforms) factors which impact on archaeological
sites and materials:
• taphonomy.
• The impact of decisions taken by archaeologists including selection, available technology and
specialists.
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3.1.3 Discovery and survey

• Desktop survey:
• historic accounts and illustrations
• old maps and plans
• antiquarian accounts
• documentary collections and databases
• photographic collections
• oral accounts
• Geographic Information Systems (GIS)
• OS maps
• archaeological reports.
• Landscape survey:
• surface survey including transects
• field walking including set up and process
• micro-contour survey
• standing building survey
• the use of total stations and GPS systems
• sampling techniques (random, stratified, systematic and stratified-systematic)
• coring, augering and shovel-pit testing
• geochemical prospection (phosphate, lipids and heavy metals).
• Geophysical survey:
• resistivity
• magnetometry including the use of Caesium Magnetometers and use in underwater survey
• Ground Penetrating Radar (GPR)
• metal detectors
• sonar.
• Remote sensing:
• aerial photography including the identification of vertical and oblique photographs, crop, soil
and parch marks, shadow sites
• lidar

• satellite survey.

3.1.4 Excavation, recovery and on-site recording
This section focuses on the destruction of the archaeological record through excavation and its
translation into the archives and reports of the record preserved by archaeologists. Archaeological
sites are individual and once excavated are lost. Students should understand the reasons for
excavation and the strategies employed by archaeologists to recover as much data as possible
from the process.
• Archaeological decision making:
• reasons for excavation: rescue, salvage and research
• ethical considerations and local community issues
• excavation strategy
• preservation ‘in situ’ and ‘preservation by record’.
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DRAFT SPECIFICATION

This section covers the range of ways that archaeological sites and landscapes are discovered,
explored and recorded without excavation. Students will need to understand the principles
underlying each method and their value and limitations to archaeology, both generally and in given
scenarios:


DRAFT SPECIFICATION

AS Archaeology DRAFT 7016. AS exams June 2018 onwards. Version 0.1 7 July 2016

• Principles of excavation:
• stratigraphy and context
• ethical considerations and local community issues

• excavation strategies including identification of trial trenching, test pits/sondages, open area,
box grid, trenches, planum method, block lift and micro-excavation.
• Process of excavation:
• tools and techniques
• recovery of artefacts and environmental evidence including sieving, metal detection and
flotation
• features, sections and cuts
• issues related to standing buildings
• issues related to underwater or waterlogged sites
• issues related to urban contexts
• recovery of human remains including techniques and ethical considerations
• on-site ‘first aid’ for fragile finds and materials.
• Recording of excavation:
• context sheets, section drawings and plans
• photographs and digital records
• note books
• site matrix.

3.1.5 Post-excavation analysis
This section focuses upon the techniques used by archaeologists to analyse and record the most
common types of material recovered from the archaeological record. Students should understand
the principles behind each technique and their value and limitation, both generally and in given
scenarios. Students should be able to translate from the most common types of illustration and
tables produced by archaeologists.
• Processing of finds and samples:
• stabilising and conserving finds and materials
• cleaning
• initial sorting and use of reference materials
• use of specialists and the nature of their reports.
• Analysis of lithics, ceramics and metals:

• visual examination including use of microscopes and SEM
• categorisation by physical properties and typology
• characterisation including petrology
• identification of manufacturing techniques including use of x-rays
• drawing finds process and what it can reveal; comparison with photographs.
• Analysis of organic materials:
• the nature of organic materials and reasons for their survival
• analysis and recording of organic artefacts
• animal bones: sexing and ageing and how numbers and size are calculated and recorded
• microfauna and their value in reconstructing environments
• soils and sediments
• analysis and recording of plants and pollen and their value in reconstructing past
environments including interpretation of common graphs and tables.
• Analysis of human remains:
• hard and soft tissue
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• analysis of age, sex, disease and trauma, diet, lifestyle and cause of death
• DNA analysis for relationships and population studies.
• Analytical techniques from physics and chemistry:
• basic principles and value and limitations of characterisation and trace-element analysis
using x-ray fluorescence, spectrometry and neutron activation analysis
• basic principles and value and limitations of organic residue analysis including lipid analysis
• basic principles and value and limitations of isotope studies into diet and sources of material
and populations.

This section focuses upon the principles and techniques used to date archaeological sites and
materials. Students need to understand the principles underpinning each technique and their value
and limitation, both generally and in given scenarios. Students should be able to translate from the

most common types of dating tables produced by archaeologists.
• Relative dating:
• archaeological periods and their relationship to geological and historical periods
• historical dating, superposition and the terms Terminus Post Quem and Terminus Ante Quem
• typology and seriation
• archaeological cultures
• pollen and faunal dating
• obsidian hydration.
• Absolute dating:
• dendrochronology
• varves, sea cores and ice cores
• radiocarbon dating including the application of Bayesian statistical methods
• thermoluminescence dating
• potassium Argon dating
• calibration of radiometric techniques.

3.1.7 Interpretation
This section focuses on the techniques archaeologists use to make sense of archaeological data in
order to construct accounts of what life was like in the past, including how tools were used and
what people believed. Students need to understand the principles behind these techniques and
their value and limitation, both generally and in given scenarios. They need to be able to apply this
understanding synoptically alongside an understanding of archaeological methods in order to
explain and assess reasons for different interpretations by archaeologists.
• Identification and interpretation of patterns:
• repeated patterns including both faunal assemblages and assemblages of artefacts
• signatures of different activities
• analysis based on stratigraphy or site formation processes including the concept of
palimpsests and taphonomic studies
• spatial patterns including inter-site and intra-site analysis and activities in ‘off-site areas’ or
the ‘taskscape’.

• The use of analogies in archaeology:
• historical analogies
• ethnographic analogies and ethnoarchaeology
• analogies from animal behaviour

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DRAFT SPECIFICATION

3.1.6 Dating


AS Archaeology DRAFT 7016. AS exams June 2018 onwards. Version 0.1 7 July 2016

• experimental archaeology.

3.2 Themes in world archaeology: depth study
This topic develops students' knowledge and understanding of the culture of a particular past
human society based on what archaeological evidence can tell us. The economic basis and
settlements of each culture must be studied along with four other key areas:

DRAFT SPECIFICATION

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social organisation and why this may have developed
the belief system(s) and rituals

art
technology.

Students will study the prescribed archaeological context below. This is made up of the five
prescribed sites or pairs of sites also listed below. An archaeological context in defined as a time
span and place where the activity of a past human society can be studied using data, buildings,
artefacts and remnants left behind.
The archaeological context we have selected for the AS depth study is pre literate to ensure that all
students can focus upon physical evidence. It has distinctive art and ritual practices associated
with it.
The study of this depth context will give students a foundation in understanding European
prehistory. This understanding will be further developed via their breadth study, either through the
study of later periods in Europe or through contrasting study of contexts on other continents.

3.2.1 The Ice Age settlement of central and western Europe
Prescribed sites:
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.

Rock shelters and caves of the Vézère Valley
Dolní Věstonice and Pavlov
Pincevent and the Paris Basin
Stellmoor-Meiendorf
Star Carr.

This context is best known for the cave art of France and Spain. It also saw the spread of a rising
population of humans northwards into hostile habitats and the development of new kinds of tools,

weapons and settlements. The most well known debate, which links art and beliefs, continues to
be around the nature and meaning of cave art and associated carvings on stone, bone, ivory and
antler.
The use of ethnographic analogies for shamanism have been particularly influential both for cave
sites and the later hunting sites of northern Europe.
Another key debate revolves around whether the survival and expansion of human populations
was due more to technological innovations such as fish-hooks or social adaptations such as
division of labour, specialisation and long distance networks.
The selection of prescribed sites reflects both key developments during this period as well as
accessibility in terms of resources. The sites of the Vézère Valley and those of the Dolní Věstonice
complex enable exploration of different modes of adaptation at the height of the Ice Age and to
compare and contrast evidence for religion, art and social organisation. Pincevent and related sites
and the Stellmoor complex represent movement away from core areas by pioneer groups and
different adaptation strategies for survival in tundra conditions. Star Carr, represents the final stage

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in this process as the ice retreated to be replaced with more wooded environments in the early
Mesolithic Europe.
Key methodological links include the challenges of excavating in deeply stratified caves, rock
shelters and wet sites and the associated problems of recovery and preservation. Ethnography and
experimentation has been particularly influential in interpretations. The impact of scientific
techniques is particularly evident in the application of DNA studies to determine the direction of
human migration and to establish the relationships between early European populations.

AS students will complete one breadth study. This breadth study must focus on a single thematic
area and extend across a minimum of three archaeological contexts, though centres may draw
from more than three archaeological contexts if they wish
Each archaeological context must cover a minimum of five sites which schools and colleges

choose themselves. Ensure that the chosen sites collectively provide sufficient examples to
discuss all the concepts and issues listed under the selected themes, can be used to compare and
contrast between societies, and also discuss continuity and change over time.
Schools and colleges must choose from the list of prescribed breadth contexts below. Note that
certain archaeological contexts are not suitable for studying particular themes. Guidance about
which archaeological contexts can be used to study each theme is given in the following sections:
1. the Cradle of Humanity: Lower Palaeolithic Africa
2. the spread of human species across the world
3. Ice Age hunting societies of Eastern Europe
4. Mesolithic Europe
5. the origins of agriculture in the Fertile Crescent
6. the origins of agriculture in East Asia and Oceania
7. the European Chalcolithic
8. the emergence of civilisations in Mesopotamia and Egypt
9. the emergence of civilisations in Meso America and the Andes
10.the emergence of civilisations in South and East Asia
11.the development of unequal societies in the Bronze Age of Central and Northern Europe
12.palace civilisations of the Eastern Mediterranean
13.the Iron Age in Northern Europe
14.Roman Europe
15.the early Medieval (migration) period in Northern Europe
16.Medieval Europe
17.the Archaeology of forager and herder societies in North America and Northern Eurasia
18.post-Medieval Europe.
We have selected most of the prescribed contexts to include cultures where schools and colleges
already have teacher expertise, materials and links to local resources. Schools and colleges
continue to have the freedom to construct a course which makes educational and logistical sense
to them, reflecting the increasing diversity of student heritage in their selection.

3.3.1 People and their activities in relation to sites in the landscape

This theme is concerned with the relationship between human groups and the landscape, including
sites, structures, boundaries and the relationships between them. Students should be familiar with

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DRAFT SPECIFICATION

3.3 Themes in world archaeology: breadth studies


AS Archaeology DRAFT 7016. AS exams June 2018 onwards. Version 0.1 7 July 2016

the sources used by archaeologists investigating sites, landscape and structures and the analogies
used to recognise and interpret them.
Models drawn from ethnography, geography and engineering will be useful but these must be
rooted in consideration of archaeological examples.

DRAFT SPECIFICATION

The following issues should be considered when teaching this theme:
• the adaptation of people to their landscapes, including the human impact on the environment,
the constraints on human activity imposed by the environment. Human exploitation of the
landscape, mobility and sedentary strategies and the location of sites
• the functions of particular sites or areas within sites, including the archaeological signatures of
different activities, how sites are identified and differentiated from other areas of human activity;
the siting, growth, reorganisation and abandonment of particular sites; the relationship between
contemporary sites
• continuity and change in settlements and settlement patterns including the emergence of
complex and specialised settlements
• reconstruction and understanding of structures and buildings, their significance and form,

including the classification of different functions of buildings and structures (including ritual,
defensive, economic and social)
• territory and boundaries, including the way human groups identified with particular areas of the
landscape, and the nature of boundaries in the past.
The following archaeological contexts are suitable for teaching this theme:
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•

Ice Age hunting societies of Eastern Europe
Mesolithic Europe
the origins of agriculture in the Fertile Crescent
the origins of agriculture in East Asia and Oceania
the European Chalcolithic
the emergence of civilisations in Mesopotamia and Egypt
the emergence of civilisations in Meso America and the Andes
the emergence of civilisations in South and East Asia

the development of unequal societies in the Bronze Age of Central and Northern Europe
palace civilisations of the Eastern Mediterranean
the Iron Age in Northern Europe
Roman Europe
the early Medieval (migration) period in Northern Europe
Medieval Europe
the Archaeology of forager and herder societies in North America and northern Eurasia
post-Medieval Europe.

3.3.2 People and their activities in relation to economics and material
culture
This theme is concerned with the economic strategies employed by past populations and the
material culture they developed, including art and technology. Students should be familiar with the
sources used by archaeologists investigating economic activities and the analogies used to
recognise and interpret them. This includes a broad understanding of the scientific methods used
to investigate sites and materials.
The following issues should be considered when teaching this theme:

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• the exploitation of plants and animals, including identification of past subsistence and diet, the
different ways animals and plants were exploited for food, and non-food uses of animals and
plants (including trees)
• extraction and production, including technology and organisation, artefacts and their
manufacture and use evidence of specialist production in the past and the function of art in the
past
• economic strategies, including ways of coping with uncertain food supplies; the relationships
between resources and site location, and permanence and function; different modes of
exchange of goods (including reciprocity and redistribution), and the nature and function of

trade
• economic change, including major changes in the economic basis of societies in the past,
changes in past technology and intensification of production and the impact of these changes.
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•

the Cradle of Humanity ‒ Lower Palaeolithic Africa
the spread of human species across the world
Ice Age hunting societies of Eastern Europe
Mesolithic Europe
the origins of agriculture in the Fertile Crescent
the origins of agriculture in East Asia and Oceania
the European Chalcolithic
the emergence of civilisations in Mesopotamia and Egypt

the emergence of civilisations in Meso America and the Andes
the emergence of civilisations in South and East Asia
the development of unequal societies in the Bronze Age of central and northern Europe
palace civilisations of the eastern Mediterranean
the Iron Age in northern Europe
Roman Europe
the early medieval (migration) period in northern Europe
Medieval Europe
the Archaeology of forager and herder societies in North America and Northern Eurasia
post-Medieval Europe.

3.3.3 People and their activities in relation to society in the past
This theme is concerned with past societies and the ways in which people have organised
themselves to achieve economic, social and political goals. Students need to be familiar with the
sources used by archaeologists to research past societies. This should include burial evidence,
human remains, building and other structures, artefacts and sites or settlements. Other evidence
may be useful, including literary texts and art, but these will not be the sole focus of questions.
Students should also understand the analogies used to recognise and interpret aspects of the
societies they have studied.
The following issues should be considered when teaching this theme:
• migration of populations in the past including the contribution of typology and genetics to our
understanding
• organisation of human societies in groups, including the organisation of social units, families
and households; variations in basic social organisation (including seasonality); the nature and
workings of religious and military organisations; the usefulness of labels such as band,
egalitarian, tribe, transegalitarian, chiefdom, state/empire and civilisation and how we might
identify them

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DRAFT SPECIFICATION

The following archaeological contexts are suitable for teaching this theme:


AS Archaeology DRAFT 7016. AS exams June 2018 onwards. Version 0.1 7 July 2016

• social differentiation, including the nature of, and reasons, for differences between individuals or
groups in the past (including status differences, age, gender, ethnicity); evidence for presence
or absence of ranking or stratification and its causes; and evidence for specialists and how they
operated within society
• power and social control, including evidence for individuals or groups having power over others,
and how it was maintained in the past; the nature of warfare in the past
• social change, including identification and causes of social change in the past and the impact of
trade and large scale surpluses on society in the past.

DRAFT SPECIFICATION

The following prescribed archaeological contexts are suitable for teaching this theme:
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•

•
•
•
•
•
•

the Cradle of Humanity ‒ Lower Palaeolithic Africa
Ice Age hunting societies of Eastern Europe
Mesolithic Europe
the origins of agriculture in the Fertile Crescent
the origins of agriculture in East Asia and Oceania
the European Chalcolithic
the emergence of civilisations in Mesopotamia and Egypt
the emergence of civilisations in Meso America and the Andes
the emergence of civilisations in South and East Asia
the development of unequal societies in the Bronze Age of Central and Northern Europe
palace civilisations of the Eastern Mediterranean
the Iron Age in Northern Europe
Roman Europe
the early Medieval (migration) period in Northern Europe
Medieval Europe
the Archaeology of forager and herder societies in North America and northern Eurasia
post-Medieval Europe.

3.3.4 People and their activities in relation to religion and ritual
This theme is concerned with ritual and beliefs in past societies including the reasons for and
functions of different forms. Students should be familiar with the sources used by archaeologists to
research past religions. This should include burial evidence, human remains, building and other
structures, artefacts and sites or settlements.

Other evidence may be useful, including literary texts and art, but these will not be the sole focus of
questions. Students should also understand the analogies used to recognise and interpret the
religions and rituals they have studied.
The following issues should be considered when teaching this theme:
• ritual activities, including how ritual activities are related to beliefs, different types of ritual
(including personal rituals and organised group activities), structure/organisation of rituals, and
specialist religious and ritual organisations
• mortuary practices, including treatment of bodies and related practices
• ritual locations and structures, including how rituals can be shown to have taken place at
particular locations and/or in specific structures, association with the surrounding landscape,
and how locations/structures act as a focus for belief
• symbolic expression, including art works, and the use of symbols and how these can be
interpreted
• ritual artefacts including the function and interpretation of artefacts in relation to religion and
ritual.

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•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•

•
•
•
•
•

Ice Age hunting societies of eastern Europe
Mesolithic Europe
the origins of agriculture in the Fertile Crescent
the origins of agriculture in East Asia and Oceania
the European Chalcolithic
the emergence of civilisations in Mesopotamia and Egypt
the emergence of civilisations in Meso America and the Andes
the emergence of civilisations in South and East Asia
the development of unequal societies in the Bronze Age of Central and Northern Europe
palace civilisations of the Eastern Mediterranean
the Iron Age in Northern Europe
Roman Europe
the early medieval (migration) period in Northern Europe
Medieval Europe
the Archaeology of forager and herder societies in North America and Northern Eurasia
post-Medieval Europe.

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DRAFT SPECIFICATION

The following archaeological contexts are suitable for teaching this theme:

AS Archaeology DRAFT 7016. AS exams June 2018 onwards. Version 0.1 7 July 2016

4 Scheme of assessment
Find past papers and mark schemes, and specimen papers for new courses, on our website at
aqa.org.uk/pastpapers
This specification is designed to be taken over one or two years.
This is a linear qualification. In order to achieve the award, students must complete all
assessments at the end of the course and in the same series.

DRAFT SPECIFICATION

AS exams and certification for this specification are available for the first time in May/June 2018
and then every May/June for the life of the specification.
All materials are available in English only.
Our AS exams in Archaeology include questions that allow students to demonstrate their ability to:
•
•
•
•

recall information
apply their knowledge and understanding in practical contexts
draw together information from different areas of the specification
construct arguments and write persuasively in order to substantiate judgements.

4.1 Aims
Courses based on this specification should encourage students to:
• understand past human societies and develop archaeological skills through experience of a
broad and balanced course of study
• understand archaeological terms, concepts and skills

• practically apply archaeological skills and methods to both primary and secondary
archaeological material and data
• demonstrate their breadth and depth of archaeological knowledge and understanding, and an
awareness of chronology
• understand what archaeological evidence can tell you about the nature of past societies, human
achievements, beliefs, moral values and attitudes and their impact on individuals, groups and
whole societies as reflected in material remains
• understand the intrinsic value and significance of archaeology and its importance in
contemporary society and heritage
• appreciate the importance of local social, cultural, religious and ethnic diversity issues to the
practice of archaeology.

4.2 Assessment objectives
Assessment objectives (AOs) are set by Ofqual and are the same across all AS Archaeology
specifications and all exam boards.
The exams will measure how students have achieved the following assessment objectives.
• AO1: Demonstrate knowledge and understanding of archaeological skills, methods, themes,
issues and contexts.

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• AO2: Apply archaeological skills and methods using archaeological terminology and
conventions, to interpret secondary archaeological material and data.
• AO3: Analyse and evaluate:
• secondary archaeological material and data
• archaeological interpretations
• archaeological themes, issues and contexts.

Assessment objectives (AOs)

Component weightings Overall
(approx %)
weighting
(approx %)
Paper 1

AO1

38

38

AO2

32

32

AO3

30

30

Overall weighting of components

100

100

4.3 Assessment weightings
The marks awarded on the papers will be scaled to meet the weighting of the components.
Students’ final marks will be calculated by adding together the scaled marks for each component.
Grade boundaries will be set using this total scaled mark. The scaling and total scaled marks are
shown in the table below.
Component

Maximum raw mark

Scaling factor

Maximum scaled mark

Paper 1

100

x1

100
Total scaled mark: 100

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DRAFT SPECIFICATION

4.2.1 Assessment objective weightings for AS Archaeology

AS Archaeology DRAFT 7016. AS exams June 2018 onwards. Version 0.1 7 July 2016

5 General administration
You can find information about all aspects of administration, as well as all the forms you need, at
aqa.org.uk/examsadmin

5.1 Entries and codes

DRAFT SPECIFICATION

You only need to make one entry for each qualification – this will cover all the question papers,
non-exam assessment and certification.
Every specification is given a national discount (classification) code by the Department for
Education (DfE), which indicates its subject area.
If a student takes two specifications with the same discount code, further and higher education
providers are likely to take the view that they have only achieved one of the two qualifications.
Please check this before your students start their course.
Qualification title

AQA entry code

DfE discount code

AQA Advanced Subsidiary GCE in Archaeology

7016

TBC

This specification complies with:

•
•
•
•

Ofqual General conditions of recognition that apply to all regulated qualifications
Ofqual GCE qualification level conditions that apply to all GCEs
Ofqual GCE subject level conditions that apply to all GCEs in this subject
all other relevant regulatory documents.

The Ofqual qualification accreditation number (QAN) is TBC.

5.2 Overlaps with other qualifications
There is overlapping content in the AS and A-level Archaeology specifications. This helps you
teach the AS and A-level together.

5.3 Awarding grades and reporting results
The AS qualification will be graded on a five-point scale: A, B, C, D and E.
Students who fail to reach the minimum standard for grade E will be recorded as U (unclassified)
and will not receive a qualification certificate.

5.4 Re-sits and shelf life
Students can resit the qualification as many times as they wish, within the shelf life of the
qualification.

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5.5 Previous learning and prerequisites
There are no previous learning requirements. Any requirements for entry to a course based on this

specification are at the discretion of schools and colleges.

5.6 Access to assessment: diversity and inclusion
The subject criteria have been assessed to see if any of the skills or knowledge required present
any possible difficulty to any students, whatever their ethnic background, religion, sex, age,
disability or sexuality. Tests of specific competences were only included if they were important to
the subject.
As members of the Joint Council for Qualifications (JCQ) we participate in the production of the
JCQ document Access Arrangements and Reasonable Adjustments: General and Vocational
qualifications. We follow these guidelines when assessing the needs of individual students who
may require an access arrangement or reasonable adjustment. This document is published at
jcq.org.uk

5.6.1 Students with disabilities and special needs
We're required by the Equality Act 2010 to make reasonable adjustments to remove or lessen any
disadvantage that affects a disabled student.
We can make arrangements for disabled students and students with special needs to help them
access the assessments, as long as the competences being tested aren't changed. Access
arrangements must be agreed before the assessment. For example, a Braille paper would be a
reasonable adjustment for a Braille reader.
To arrange access arrangements or reasonable adjustments, you can apply using the online
service at aqa.org.uk/eaqa

5.6.2 Special consideration
We can give special consideration to students who have been disadvantaged at the time of the
assessment through no fault of their own – for example a temporary illness, injury or serious
problem such as family bereavement. We can only do this after the assessment.
Your exams officer should apply online for special consideration at aqa.org.uk/eaqa
For more information and advice visit aqa.org.uk/access or email

5.7 Working with AQA for the first time
If your school or college hasn't previously offered our specifications, you need to register as an
AQA centre. Find out how at aqa.org.uk/becomeacentre

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DRAFT SPECIFICATION

General qualifications are designed to prepare students for a wide range of occupations and
further study. Therefore our qualifications must assess a wide range of competences.


AS Archaeology DRAFT 7016. AS exams June 2018 onwards. Version 0.1 7 July 2016

5.8 Private candidates

DRAFT SPECIFICATION

This specification is not available to private candidates.

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Get help and support
Visit our website for information, guidance, support and resources at aqa.org.uk/7016
You can talk directly to the Archaeology subject team:
E:

DRAFT SPECIFICATION

T: 0161 958 3861

aqa.org.uk
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permitted to copy material from this specification for their own internal use.
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