AQA 7017 SP 2017

DRAFT SPECIFICATION

A-LEVEL
ARCHAEOLOGY

DRAFT 7017

Specification
For teaching from September 2017 onwards
For A-level exams in 2019 onwards
Version 0.1 7 July 2016


DRAFT SPECIFICATION


A-level Archaeology DRAFT 7017. A-level exams June 2019 onwards. Version 0.1 7 July 2016

Contents
1 Introduction

5

1.1 Why choose AQA for A-level 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

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

4 Scheme of assessment
4.1 Aims
4.2 Assessment objectives
4.3 Assessment weightings
4.4 Non-exam assessment

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5 Non-exam assessment administration 31
5.1 Supervising and authenticating
5.2 Avoiding malpractice
5.3 Teacher standardisation
5.4 Internal standardisation
5.5 Commenting
5.6 Submitting marks
5.7 Factors affecting individual students
5.8 Keeping students' work
5.9 Moderation
5.10 After moderation

6 General administration
6.1 Entries and codes
6.2 Overlaps with other qualifications
6.3 Awarding grades and reporting results
6.4 Re-sits and shelf life
6.5 Previous learning and prerequisites
6.6 Access to assessment: diversity and inclusion
6.7 Working with AQA for the first time

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DRAFT SPECIFICATION

6.8 Private candidates

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/7017
We will write to you if there are significant changes to the specification.

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A-level Archaeology DRAFT 7017. A-level exams June 2019 onwards. Version 0.1 7 July 2016

1 Introduction
1.1 Why choose AQA for A-level 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.

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.
You can find out about all our Archaeology qualifications at aqa.org.uk/archaeology

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/7017 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/7017 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/7017
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 A-level 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 2019.

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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


A-level Archaeology DRAFT 7017. A-level exams June 2019 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 and submit all their
non-exam assessment at the end of the course.

2.1 Subject content

DRAFT SPECIFICATION

Core content
1. Archaeology in practice (page 9)
2. Debates in world archaeology (page 13)
3. Themes in world archaeology: depth studies (page 14)
4. Themes in world archaeology: breadth studies (page 16)

2.2 Assessments
Paper 1
What's assessed
• Archaeology in practice
• Debates in world archaeology
How it's assessed
• Written exam: 2 hours 30 minutes
• 80 marks
• 40% of A-level

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

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Paper 2
What's assessed
• Themes in world archaeology: depth studies
• Themes in world archaeology: breadth studies
How it's assessed
• Written exam: 2 hour 30 minutes
• 80 marks
• 40% of A-level

A combination of extended writing questions.

Non-exam assessment (NEA)
What's assessed
Archaeological investigation
How it's assessed
• 3000–4000 words essay
• 80 marks
• 20% of A-level
Questions
Students complete an individual investigation which must include data collected in the field. The
individual investigation must be based on a question or issue defined and developed by the
student relating to any part of the specification content.

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DRAFT SPECIFICATION

Questions


A-level Archaeology DRAFT 7017. A-level exams June 2019 onwards. Version 0.1 7 July 2016

3 Subject content
3.1 Archaeology in practice
This section of the specification takes 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 understandings of past human activity. They
should be able to explain and illustrate not only their value but also their 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
• 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

A-level Archaeology DRAFT 7017. A-level exams June 2019 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 should 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 versions 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 intersite and intrasite 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


A-level Archaeology DRAFT 7017. A-level exams June 2019 onwards. Version 0.1 7 July 2016

• experimental archaeology.

3.1.8 Cultural resource management

DRAFT SPECIFICATION

This section focuses upon the professional, legislative and advisory frameworks within which
archaeology operates and the way in which archaeological remains are protected and utilised.
Students should understand their impact and limitations, particularly in terms of protection of
archaeological remains.
• Threats to archaeological remains and protective measures:
• environmental and human threats to archaeology including assessing risk and actual impact
• international protection for archaeology including the role of UNESCO, World Heritage Sites
and the Valetta Convention
• protective legislation in England including scheduled sites (Ancient Monuments and
Archaeological Areas Act 1979), listed buildings and the use of registers
• protection through the planning process in England (National Planning Policy Framework
2012) including the concept of preservation in situ and heritage assets
• The Treasure Act and Portable Antiquities Scheme.
• Archaeologists and archaeology:

• the roles of professional and amateur archaeologists
• the roles of Universities and contracting units
• the role of museums
• how archaeological sites are presented.

3.2 Debates in world archaeology
This section focuses upon two broad areas of contemporary debates in archaeology and provides
an opportunity for students to develop an understanding in depth of one of these and to integrate
with news and discoveries during their course. Students should develop balanced understandings
of the issues and to be able to construct a reasoned argument in response to a statement about
one or more of the sub-issues listed here.

3.2.1 Political and ethical debates in world archaeology
These debates are characterised by issues around ‘access to’ and ‘ownership’ of the past and the
way in which contemporary groups use archaeology or archaeological remains.
• Controversies about metal detecting and detectorists.
• Controversies over the funding of archaeology and the preservation of archaeological remains
in competition with other priorities.
• Debates about the social or economic value of archaeology or archaeological sites including the
modern concept of ‘heritage assets’ and archaeology as a community asset.
• Debates around the validity and use of the concept of World Heritage.
• Debates about community archaeology and whether amateurs should undertake archaeological
work.
• Controversies around the use of archaeology in the construction of national identity by modern
states, indigenous peoples, groups within modern states.
• Controversies around the relationship between ‘western’ archaeologists and local populations
including the excavation of sacred or burial sites.
• Controversies around the relationship between indigenous groups and scientists including the
study of human remains.

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• Relationships between ‘western’ museums and foreign governments and indigenous groups
including debates about repatriation of artefacts.
• Controversies about the ethics and impact of the trade in antiquities.
• Debates about the impact of war and political extremism on archaeological sites and collections.
• Debates about the place of archaeology in education.

3.2.2 Debates about human evolution and human interaction with the
environment.

• Debates about the relative importance of the contribution of archaeology and other disciplines to
our understanding of evolution.
• Debates about the development and significance of key indicators of modern human patterns of
behaviour including pair bonding, meat-eating, residential bases, tool use and hunting.
• Debates around the lineage of anatomically modern humans with particular reference to the role
of Africa and the impact of recent discoveries in Asia.
• Debates around the reasons for and significance of key physiological changes including upright
locomotion and the development of language.
• Debates about the impact of climate and environmental change upon human evolution.
• Debates about the relative importance of other factors impacting on human evolution including
competition, natural selection and diet.
• Debates about the changing place of humans in nature and human interaction with their
environment over the long term including evidence for mass-extinctions.
• Debates about the changing evidence base for evolution and the relative importance of
developments in dating, DNA, primate studies and recent fossil discoveries.
• Debates about how humans were able to adapt to ice age Europe.
• Controversies around the reasons for the demise of the Neanderthals.
• Debates about whether there was a ‘creative explosion’ during the Upper Palaeolithic and what

were the causes and impacts.
• Debates about the earliest evidence for symbolic behaviour and what it represents.

3.3 Themes in world archaeology: depth studies
This topic develops students' knowledge and understanding of the culture of two 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:
•
•
•
•

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

Students will study the two prescribed archaeological contexts below. These are made up of the
five prescribed sites or pairs of sites also listed below. An archaeological context is 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

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DRAFT SPECIFICATION

These debates focus upon the impact of scientific evidence based on our understanding of key
changes in the development of hominins over the last three million years. Students should have a
basic understanding of changes from seven million years ago but emphasis is upon evolution from
the Australopithecines to anatomically modern humans.

A-level Archaeology DRAFT 7017. A-level exams June 2019 onwards. Version 0.1 7 July 2016

The archaeological contexts we have selected for the A-level depth study are preliterate to ensure
that all students can focus upon physical evidence. They have distinctive art and ritual practices
associated with them.
The study of these depth contexts will give students a foundation in understanding European
prehistory. This understanding will be further developed via their breadth studies, either through the
study of later periods in Europe or through contrasting study of contexts on other continents.

3.3.1 The Ice Age settlement of central and western Europe

DRAFT SPECIFICATION

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
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.

3.3.2 The Neolithic transformation of Europe
Prescribed sites:
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.

Karanovo and Stara Zagora
Langweiler and Vaihingen
West Kennet and Windmill Hill
Skara Brae and Ness of Brodgar
Eulau and Talheim.

This context features the earliest farming, houses and villages across Europe and the emergence
of distinctive but stable ways of life across the continent. Alongside domesticated plants and
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animals the key technological developments include agricultural tools, field systems, ceramics and
polished stone axes. Art ranges from petroglyphs to ceramic, largely female, figurines. Ritual focus
is initially associated with houses but by the late Neolithic large scale monuments are being built in
the north west.
Debates include the nature, mechanism and speed of the replacement of Mesolithic cultures and
around the thesis of the feminist archaeologist Marija Gimbutas and her conception of the culture
of a peaceful, matriarchal ‘Old Europe’.

The selection of prescribed sites reflects different modes of adaptation in different parts of Europe
over this period. Karanovo represents the earliest permanent farming villages and a tell-site model
with features familiar from Anatolia. The Linear Pottery sites from forested central Europe are
radically different, particularly in terms of the massive timber longhouses which typify such
settlements. The two sites from the British Isles are very different again and both share an
emphasis on the importance of ancestors in their monuments. Eulau and Talheim are both
massacre sites from the end of the Neolithic in Europe and are particularly valuable for what they
can tell us about social relationships.
Key methodological links include the challenges of excavating in deeply tell sites, major modern
developments and the analysis of human remains and environmental data. 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. Other
techniques are being applied to re-analyse existing collections of material including applying
Bayesian dating techniques to identify individual events and lipid analysis of ceramics to identify
the start and spread of dairying.

3.4 Themes in world archaeology: breadth studies
A-level students will complete two breadth studies. Each breadth study must focus on a different
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 of each theme is given in the following
sections:
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.

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

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DRAFT SPECIFICATION

Explanations of change include invaders from the Steppes, cultural influences from Eurasia, long
distance exchange and indigenous developments. Other key issues include the significance of
houses and the concept of a ‘secondary products revolution’. Modern scientific studies are having
a transformative impact on our understanding of the Neolithic including dating, diet, population
movements and social relationships.


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DRAFT SPECIFICATION

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.

3.4.1 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
the sources used by archaeologists to investigate 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.
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 prescribed 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

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•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•

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.

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 to investigate 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:
• 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 and evidence of specialist production in the past, 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 following prescribed archaeological contexts are suitable for teaching this theme:
•
•
•
•
•
•

•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•

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.

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DRAFT SPECIFICATION

3.4.2 People and their activities in relation to economics and material
culture


A-level Archaeology DRAFT 7017. A-level exams June 2019 onwards. Version 0.1 7 July 2016

3.4.3 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 should 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.
Candidates should also understand the analogies used to recognise and interpret aspects of the
societies they have studied.

DRAFT SPECIFICATION

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
• 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, evidence for specialists and how they
operated within society
• power and social control, including evidence for individuals or groups having power over others,
how it was maintained in the past and 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.
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.

3.4.4 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

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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.
• 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;
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,
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.
The following prescribed archaelogical 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.

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DRAFT SPECIFICATION

The following sub-themes should be considered when teaching this theme:


A-level Archaeology DRAFT 7017. A-level exams June 2019 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 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

A-level exams and certification for this specification are available for the first time in May/June
2019 and then every May/June for the life of the specification.
All materials are available in English only.
Our A-level exams in Archaeology include questions that allow students to demonstrate their ability
to:
•
•
•
•

recall information
apply their knowledge and understanding in practical and theoretical 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 A-level Archaeology
specifications and all exam boards.
The exams and non-exam assessment will measure how students have achieved the following
assessment objectives.

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4.2.1 Assessment objective weightings for A-level Archaeology
Assessment objectives (AOs)

Component weightings
(approx %)

Overall weighting
(approx %)

Paper 1 Paper 2 NEA
AO1

10

AO2

20

AO3

10

Overall weighting of components

40

15

25
10

30

25

10

45

40

20

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

80

x2

160

Paper 2

80

x2

160

NEA

80

x1

80
Total scaled mark: 400

4.4 Non-exam assessment
4.4.1 Archaeological investigation
The archaeological investigation is assessed in the Non-exam assessment.

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DRAFT SPECIFICATION

• AO1: Demonstrate knowledge and understanding of archaeological skills, methods, themes,
issues and contexts.
• AO2: Apply archaeological skills and methods, using archaeological terminology and
conventions to:
• interpret primary archaeological material and data
• interpret secondary archaeological material and data.
• AO3: Analyse and evaluate:
• primary archaeological material and data
• secondary archaeological material and data
• archaeological interpretations
• archaeological themes, issues and contexts.


A-level Archaeology DRAFT 7017. A-level exams June 2019 onwards. Version 0.1 7 July 2016

4.4.2 Requirement and recommendations for fieldwork and material
handling

All students are required to engage with primary material. This could be in relation to the processes
of recording both buildings and earthworks, and in the handling and recording of artefacts and
ecofacts. This could be accomplished in a number of ways: locally, on full days or on part days.

4.4.3 Investigation requirements

DRAFT SPECIFICATION

Students are required to undertake an independent archaeological investigation. This must
incorporate a significant element of fieldwork and/or engagement with artefactual and/or ecofactual
material.
The primary data collection undertaken as part of the individual investigation may be based on the
archaeology of standing structures, landscapes, a study of artefacts and/or ecofacts or a
combination of all of these elements. They may incorporate field data and/or evidence collected
individually or in groups. What is important is that students work on their own contextualising,
analysing and reporting their work to produce an independent investigation with an individual title
that demonstrates required archaeological knowledge, skills and understanding.
The independent investigation must:
• be based on a research question or issue defined and developed by the student individually to
address aims, questions and/or hypotheses relating to the specification content
• involve research of relevant literature sources and an understanding of the theoretical or
comparative context for a research question/hypothesis
• incorporate the observation and recording of primary data and evidence from field investigations
that is of good quality and relevant to the topic under investigation
• involve justification of the practical approaches adopted in the collection of primary data
including frequency/timing of observation, sampling and data collection approaches
• draw on the student's own research, including their own primary data and/or secondary data,
and their experience of relevant methodologies studied in Paper 1
• demonstrate knowledge and understanding of the techniques appropriate for analysing primary
data and information and for representing results, and where relevant show ability to select

suitable quantitative or qualitative approaches and to apply them
• demonstrate the ability to interrogate and critically examine primary data in order to comment on
its accuracy and/or the extent to which it is representative, and use the experience to extend
archaeological understanding
• require the student to independently contextualise, analyse and summarise findings and data,
and to draw conclusions by applying existing knowledge, theory and concepts to order and
understand primary observations and identify their relation to the wider context
• involve the writing up of results clearly, logically and coherently using a range of presentation
methods and extended writing
• demonstrate the ability to answer a specific archaeological question drawing effectively on
evidence and theory to make a well argued case
• require evaluation and reflection on the investigation including showing an understanding of the
ethical dimensions of primary research.

4.4.4 Independence
Most stages of the investigation must be carried out independently. The only parts of the
investigation that may be carried out collaboratively, either as a class, group or pair, is the
collection of primary data or evidence from primary observations.

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Independence is compulsory in the following stages of the investigation:
• defining and developing a question or issue to address aims, questions and/or hypotheses
relating to any aspect of the specification
• drawing on research, including field data and if relevant, secondary data which must be sourced
by the student
• contextualising, analysing and summarising findings and data
• presenting data and drawing conclusions.
If students collaborate where independence is expected then the teacher must record this

additional assistance on the Candidate record form (CRF) and take it into account when marking
the work.

Students should select a manageable focus for their investigation which enables them to select
one or more focused research question or issue with both a theoretical basis and a locational
context. Appropriate methods should be used to collect relevant data. The data collected should
permit the use of appropriate cartographical, photographic, graphical and statistical skills to enable
a full interpretation to be made, which should include reference to the title/aim.
The conclusion should include a summary of the results, the relevance of these to the title/aim and
an evaluation of the overall investigation, including the contributions and limitations of archaeology
in understanding the topic and opportunities for further research.
Preparation for this unit must involve enquiry work outside the classroom, to include data collection
in the field and might include, for example, data collected in specialist study venues, work
experience settings, internet research and use of the library or archive.
Students are expected to submit a written report which is 3,000–4,000 words in length. This
includes all text, text boxes and supplementary material such as photographs and data
presentation techniques. It does not include appendices. When attaching appendices students
should have examples of raw data only, such as data sheets and questionnaires, rather than every
questionnaire used.
Students who offer work that is below the advisory word count may be penalising themselves by
not allowing appropriate coverage of the required assessment objectives. Students who exceed
the advisory word count may be penalising themselves through a lack of precision and focus, but
there will be no additional penalties imposed for not meeting the advisory word count.

4.4.6 Guidance permissible from teachers
Teachers should:
• provide broad parameters for students’ investigation proposals (including themes from the
specification, locations, availability of equipment, time constraints)
• explain what independence means
• advise on health and safety considerations, the use of equipment and potential ethical concerns

• discuss with students their initial exploratory planning and tentative investigation titles
• review each student’s independent investigation proposal (within this review you should ensure
that the proposed investigation can suitably access the specification requirements and you
should give general guidance on the methodology and analytical tools that the student plans to
use)
• advise on good practice such as referencing and using a bibliography system.
The above advice does not need to be recorded or taken into account when marking the work.

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DRAFT SPECIFICATION

4.4.5 Guidance for students


A-level Archaeology DRAFT 7017. A-level exams June 2019 onwards. Version 0.1 7 July 2016

Teachers must not:

DRAFT SPECIFICATION

• provide students with a choice of titles or tasks from which they then choose
• mark work provisionally and share that mark so that the student may then improve it
• give guidance on how to make improvements to the draft in order to meet the assessment
criteria without recording it as additional assistance on the Candidate record form (CRF) and
taking it into account when marking the work (these conditions apply equally to third party
fieldwork providers).
• provide templates or model answers for specific titles or students
• provide detailed and specific feedback on errors and omissions which limits students’
opportunities to show initiative themselves

• provide primary or secondary data not collected by the student either individually or as part of a
group.
Any additional guidance of this nature must be recorded on the Candidate record form (CRF) and
taken into account when marking the work. Annotation must be used to explain how marks were
applied in the context of the additional assistance given. Failure to do so will be considered as
malpractice.
If malpractice is suspected with regard to guidance and feedback to students, we will investigate. If
malpractice is found to have taken place a penalty will be given dependent on the circumstances
and severity of the malpractice. For full information, please see Malpractice (page 46) and the JCQ
instructions Suspected Malpractice in Examinations and Assessment.

4.4.7 Assessment criteria (80 marks)
The NEA component is worth 80 marks. 40 marks are available for AO1 and 40 marks available for
AO2.

4.4.7.1 Area 1: Introduction and secondary research (20 marks)
Assessment Criteria: to research relevant literature sources and understand and write up the
theoretical or comparative context for a research question.
Mark

Description

16–20

The rationale for the choice of research question and its theoretical or
comparative context will be thoroughly explained and supported by a detailed use
of relevant and specialised literature sources to include academic texts; relevant
maps, plans, illustrations, photographs; archive reports.

11–15

The rationale for the choice of research question and its theoretical or
comparative context is explained and supported by appropriate use of relevant
and more specialised literature sources to include academic texts; relevant maps,
plans, illustrations and photographs; archive reports.

6–10

The rationale for the choice of research question and its theoretical or
comparative context will be developed in places. Explanations will be supported
by a limited range of relevant literature sources to include general texts, relevant
maps, plans, illustrations and photographs or archive reports. Explanations may
lack development is places.

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