Students in Dr. Brunson’s Humanities class gave a series of biographical presentations on the Renaissance this week. Subjects included Leonardo da Vinci, Artemesia Gentileschi, Shakespeare, Barbara Longhi, Isotta Nogarola, music, spices, and even Sir Thomas More. Students studied, researched, and then wrote papers about their given topics, culminating in oral presentations before their peers.

After presenting, classmates were able to ask questions and dialogue with the presenter about the subject in order to learn more and refine their understanding.

Students were graded for personal appearance as well as their oral composition, including grammatical elements, rhetorical elements, and their thesis.

This cycle is part of the regular structure of Dr. Brunson’s classes. Students are not only challenged to think critically, but to create and communicate intellectually about their subjects, encouraging interaction, dialogue, and participatory learning with their peers. This process does more than help students improve their communication skills, it also gives others insight into subject areas they might not have the opportunity to learn otherwise.

For instance, in this particular presentation, Ty Overbeek researched, wrote, and spoke with his peers about da Vinci’s sketches of the human body he made through dissections. A particularly interesting point came from da Vinci’s search for the human soul during this process – was it located in the heart, or in the head?