Nathan Branson
Whatever you read here is a way for me to hash out ideas until I can talk about them in real-time with whoever is willing to join in.
Do college students need church?
We should not underestimate the mentoring that churches provide to the stressed out college student.
As a community college English instructor, I often hear conversations about what we can do to help students graduate. We want students to complete their degrees as efficiently as possible so they can move on to a four-year university or immediately into their career path. Educators today are skilled at helping students gain work ethic, . . .
Posted in: christiancommunity collegeeveryday survivalintellect vs. emotionsmillennialspeace of mind
The North Carolina State Motto: One Reason I Became a Christian
During my senior year of high school that I achieved the goal of becoming semi-popular. High school is more like a hierarchy than a democracy. My senior year I had tasted what it felt like to be near the top of that hierarchy. Some of it conscious and some of it unconscious, I had struggled for three years of high school to be admired by . . .
Taylor Mali's Reasons Why It Has Become Uncool to Sound like you Know What You are Talking About
The Consequences of Repetitively using "Like" and "Ya Know What I'm Saying"
"It has somehow become uncool to sound like you know what you are talking about" is the opening line to a short Youtube video (with nearly 2 million hits). I've shown this Taylor Mali speech to over 20 sections of English composition over the last 3 years. That is, I show it to all my composition classes. This semester I showed . . .
Posted in: community collegeeng 101millennialspublic speakingself-controlteaching yourselfwriting tips
What We can Learn about Storytelling from 90's sit-com "Full House"
Transitioning From a "Story-Consumer" to a "Story Teller"
Our culture is desperate for storytellers. On a weekly basis we watch movies, television and any number of streaming media because we are in search of a story. I watch at least 2 movies a week. If I let myself, I could make a habit of watching something every night. However, I do not believe we were only created to listen or watch other . . .
Music for Study and Work Productivity
Top Four: Tycho, Explosions in the Sky, Moby and Enya
Music makes mental work easier. If you are a student, you might need to review terms for biology in order to pass an exam. If you are writing an essay, you might need music to feel inspired. Doing menial tasks at work can be the same way. Sitting at a desk for 4 straight hours doing work on a computer feels like running a mental marathon. If . . .
Posted in: community college
The 5 Year Process of Learning How to Wakeboard
Why Being Aware of How You Learn Makes Everything Easier to Learn
I tried wakeboarding in 2006 for the first time at High Rock Lake outside of Lexington, NC. At the age of 22, I believed I could do anything. In terms of social, physical and intellectual confidence, I was at a peak. Along with that, I knew how to snowboard. The transition seemed like a given. Snowboarding and wakeboarding begin the same way . . .
Accuracy in Language Motivates More Than Grammar
Does "Correct Grammar" Motivate Students in English Class?
Many students who come into my English 111 believe that the primary purpose of my class is for me to change them into "grammatically correct" writers and hammer into them the ability to "speak properly." In terms of motivation, an end goal of correct grammar is not enough to make students want to change their writing or . . .
Posted in: community collegewriting tips
