Welcoming all learners with Intentionally Equitable Hospitality

In my conversation with Dr. Maha Bali about “Intentionally Equitable Hospitality” (IEH), which included professors Tom Haymes and Bryan Alexander, we discussed how to welcome all learners and explored the many literacies needed today; visual thinking, creating and using images, and the use of “AI” models despite their limitations, especially for language translation.

Intentionally Equitable Hospitality as Critical Instructional Design

A conversation with Dr. Maha Bali about “Intentionally Equitable Hospitality” (IEH) and how this professional development journey emerged from her earlier projects Virtually Connecting and Equity Unbound. A professor of practice at the Center for Learning and Teaching at the American University in Cairo, we were joined by professors Tom Haymes and Bryan Alexander to discuss our experiences teaching and learning with digital technologies. IEH offers opportunities to engage with marginalized perspectives, encourage critical thinking and accessibility, and create more welcoming and equitable learning spaces. We explored the many literacies needed today, including visual thinking, creating and using images, and the use of “AI” models despite their limitations, especially for language translation. Mike Caulfield’s SIFT model to assess information was mentioned and his latest version designed to use with Claude.ai. As always, we approached these issues from both ‘open’ and institutional perspectives, and in the context of our current political climate. Maha’s cake baking and decorating metaphors added the frosting to this episode. Intentionally Equitable Hospitality Series for May 2024 https://equityunbound.org/ieh-series-may-204/ Intentionally Equitable Hospitality as Critical Instructional Design by Maha Bali and Mia Zamora https://pressbooks.pub/designingforcare/chapter/intentionally-equitable-hospitality-as-critical-instructional-design/ Equity Unbound is hosting MYFest again this year! June through August 2025. The “Mid-Year Festival” (MYFest) is a “recharge and renewal experience” exploring community building, critical pedagogy, socially just education, AI in education, open educational practices, digital literacies, and activities that support wellbeing and joy. https://equityunbound.org/ MyEssayFeedback uses AI to offer students detailed and fast formative feedback on their essays under the guidance of an instructor or tutor. https://myessayfeedback.ai/ SIFT Toolbox for Claude Released: I don’t know how to explain how much this changes everything, so I’m just going to ask you to try it. By Mike Caulfield Mar 31, 2025 https://mikecaulfield.substack.com/p/sift-toolbox-for-claude-and-chatgpt

I met Maha through Mia Zamora and Alan Levine’s Networked Narratives: Digital Alchemy of Storytelling open course in 2017, after stumbling upon Alan's #Western106 version of #ds106 the year before. Since then I’ve participated in the Virtually Connecting, Equity Unbound, and IEH projects which are open, educational, and welcoming to all. I’ve learned so much about intercultural and caring spaces from Maha. I participated in last year’s IEH to engage with people with informed perspectives on how to include marginalized learners to create more welcoming and equitable learning spaces. 

Maha introduces herself as a critical digital pedagogue. I use critical digital humanist. I embarked on my new educational adventure, before I finished my associates degrees as a middle aged returning student, by taking Jesse Stommel’s Critical Pedagogy and Digital Praxis in the Humanities course at the University of Victoria’s Digital Humanities Summer Institute in British Columbia, Canada, in 2016. That led to many more courses at both UVic and the University of Mary Washington, the home of Domain of One's Own, Digital Storytelling 106 #ds106 and the Digital Pedagogy Lab #DigPedLab. "Maha was instrumental in organizing the first international Digital Pedagogy Lab institute" in 2016, closing this loop. As a result of this work I am the third person to achieve the Canadian Certificate in Digital Humanities, thus a critical digital humanist.

I'm looking forward to this year's Intentionally Equitable Hospitality and MYFest journeys. Come join us and help grow this international, open, and welcoming network.

Intentionally Equitable Hospitality (IEH) Series. 15 April - 6 May, 2025

Join us for a three week reflection on facilitation, including three live sessions, and asynchronous activities throughout the experience.

Eventbrite

Resources mentioned

Intentionally Equitable Hospitality Series 2024
https://equityunbound.org/ieh-series-may-204/

Intentionally Equitable Hospitality as Critical Instructional Design by Maha Bali and Mia Zamora
https://pressbooks.pub/designingforcare/chapter/intentionally-equitable-hospitality-as-critical-instructional-design/

Equity Unbound is hosting MYFest again this year! June through August 2025.The “Mid-Year Festival” (MYFest) is a “recharge and renewal experience” exploring community building, critical pedagogy, socially just education, AI in education, open educational practices, digital literacies,  and activities that support wellbeing and joy.
https://equityunbound.org/

Bryan Mathers’ Remixer
https://remixer.visualthinkery.com/

A Brief History of Domain of One’s Own (2 parts)
https://umwdtlt.com/a-brief-history-of-domain-of-ones-own-part-1/

A History of ds106
https://ds106.us/history/

Digital Pedagogy Lab
https://hybridpedagogy.org/teaching-in-our-right-minds/

Networked Narratives: Digital Alchemy of Storytelling
https://clalliance.org/blog/networked-narratives-digital-alchemy-storytelling/

MyEssayFeedback uses AI to offer students detailed and fast formative feedback on their essays under the guidance of an instructor or tutor.
https://myessayfeedback.ai/

SIFT Toolbox for Claude Released: I don't know how to explain how much this changes everything, so I'm just going to ask you to try it. By Mike Caulfield Mar 31, 2025
https://mikecaulfield.substack.com/p/sift-toolbox-for-claude-and-chatgpt