Three cheers for Tim!
 
I agree completely that "real" experiences have much greater impact than
"contrived" experiences.  Our field programs for middle school aged and
older kids involves their participation in the excavation of a real site
along side real undergrad archaeology students who provide supervision
and assistance.  It's also a great way to teach supervisory skills!
 
I also understand and can relate to many of the points the good doctor
from California has made.  I've had it up to here (about two feet above
my head) with Midwest and western technicians who have never really seen
stratigraphy (except maybe a plowzone/subsoil interface) and have no
idea what a feature looks like in plan.
 
Regards,
John
 
John P. McCarthy, SOPA
Vice President, Sr. Archaeologist/Historian
IMA Consulting, Inc.  AND
Sr. Research Fellow and Principal Investigator/Lead Field School
Instructor
Institute for Minnesota Archaeology
Minneapolis