#CUE14 Pictures using Loupe Collage

I wanted a creative way to compile and share my pictures from my recent trip with Curriculet to CUE 2014 conference in Palm Springs, California. Searching through the Chrome Web Store, I found Loupe Collage. Similar to creating a customized word cloud in Tagxedo, Loupe Collage allows users to pull in pictures from Facebook, Google +, Drive, Dropbox, Twitter, the web, Instagram, and files (ok, everywhere) to create a collage where the shape and background can be customized. Once the collage is created, users can share it via Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, Gmail, Drive, link, and embed.

I am really impressed with the ease of this tool. I grabbed all my pictures from CUE and pulled in those that others took and shared with me to create the collage below.  It took me just a few minutes to create!  While I love social photography, I do get overwhelmed trying to manage the photos, and while I have automatic backup of my pictures via Facebook and Google +, I don't often do much with the pictures after they are backed up. Using Loupe Collage, I can create a collage for each special event and share it with my colleagues, friends and family who were also there. To see each image, simply hover over it to enlarge.

Rather appropriate, this is my 100th blog post.  While I write about edtech tools and activities, what is more important are the people and enriching experiences. Edtech is more so about fostering connections than the tool itself. The technology brings us all together: friends, colleagues, companies,  we are all digital compatriots. Thank you all for reading, sharing, and collaborating.

#CUE14 People Pictures

I need a smartphone with a better front camera, and I need to perfect my selfie-taking skills, because I am HORRIBLE! With that being said, I had such a blast at #CUE14 and seeing all of my favorite California Twitter folks and hanging out in Curriculet's booth telling EVERYONE who passed how much I LOVE my favorite digital reading tool of all time! Dude, seriously.  #NoHyperbole 

 

  

Also, another selfie with @KtBkr4 at #cue14 because why not? pic.twitter.com/fbKwPtLM1e
— Cheryl Morris (@guster4lovers) March 22, 2014

So this happened. After @willkimbley admired my thinglink. @KtBkr4 #cue14 #spatula pic.twitter.com/eVNmxBsctD
— Cheryl Morris (@guster4lovers) March 22, 2014

All of the #cue14 gang (except @jstevens009) @ls_karl @sampatue @crystalkirch @KtBkr4 @bennettscience @thomasson_engl pic.twitter.com/UY5FTc3RkN
— Cheryl Morris (@guster4lovers) March 22, 2014

All of the #cue14 gang (except @jstevens009) @ls_karl @sampatue @crystalkirch @KtBkr4 @bennettscience @thomasson_engl pic.twitter.com/UY5FTc3RkN
— Cheryl Morris (@guster4lovers) March 22, 2014

Flying thru Social Learning Theory

My life-time flying experience is fairly limited: senior trip to Disney in high school,  a 1 once a year training trip to Ft. Lauderdale with my college swim team, a vacation to California 15 years ago when I first started teaching, another vacation 13 years ago to the Dominican Republic, an Edmodo-sponsored trip to Edmodocon last August, and now, a trip to CUE 2014 in California sponspored by Curriculet. Having always flown with someone else, most recently Liz Calderwood, I always followed the lead of others. This time there is no one with me, and I have to rely on all that I learned from LIz and figure out what to do based on what I see everyone else doing.  This is social learning in action.

I’m not a herd animal, but I am always watching what others do. I am fiercely independent (rather appropriate considering my birthday) and I rarely like being told what to do (just ask my husband), so this experience of flying on my own is an experience in social learning: I must follow the rules and protocols of the airline business or I will not reach my destination, and the only way to know the rules and protocols is to follow the leads of others.

Thinking about prestige-bias as an adult learning in a new environment, I was selective with who I modeled. As a professional adult on a business trip, I was not going to model my behavior after young children, but instead those who looked like they were also business travellers. As I boarded the shuttle bus from the parking lot to the terminal falling in behind the woman in front of me and watching her place her bags, I first realized what I was doing: I was observing her behavior and mimicking it.  After disembarking and entering the terminal, I used what I remembered from my last trip with Liz to locate a check-in kiosk and confirm my flight--recalling retained information.  Then as I stood in the security line, I craned my neck to observe the scanning procedures: what needs to be in the bin, where do my shoes go, what can stay in the bag.

There is the stress of making sure I perform well-- while I can make some mistakes, if I don’t pass this “test,” I will not be able to continue on my journey--exactly aligning with the threshold guardians of the Hero’s Journey motif (not that I’m calling myself a hero-- oh no!). The Hero’s Journey motif is a journey of transformation and growth, and through the process of the journey the main character evolves. In my case, I’m evolving from an inexperienced traveller to a capable frequent flyer.

Speaking of social learning, I am documenting my trip for the folks back home-- my family and friends will know I’m safe by my myriad of Facebook posts and Tweets, and my students will feel my virtual  presence in the classroom as I share my travelogue on Edmodo. So not only am I demonstrating social learning, but I’m also letting others learn socially from me.

Sitting in the airport, I make the most of the free wifi
and stay in touch with my students on Edmodo.