Teaching and Learning Webinar | Slow Thinking Pedagogy in a Culture of Convenience

Presented by Assistant Professor Lillian Abadal, University of South Florida

This talk will consider the philosophy behind “Slow Thinking Pedagogy,” which inspired the creation of a writing workbook for humanities courses called “Drafted”.

Slow thinking pedagogy emphasizes the idea that critical thinking must be slow thinking. Fast thinking is often wrought with knee jerk reactions, a temptation to adopt easy answers, and a preference for the path of least resistance. Big questions—the sort that the humanities are in service to—deserve slow thinking. As a result, educators in the humanities have a responsibility to design assessments that model and incentive this process, particularly in a world that presumes convenience, efficiency and ease to be unqualifiedly good. The result, she argues, is helping students cultivate intellectual—as opposed to counterfeit—virtue. Lily will also walk through the contents of the Drafted workbook and explain practical steps towards implementing it in the classroom.

About the speaker

Lily Abadal is an Assistant Professor of Instruction at the University of South Florida’s philosophy department. She specializes in normative and applied ethics in the Thomistic virtue ethics tradition and has also published work in the areas of moral psychology, the history of philosophy, and the philosophy of psychology. Her current projects sit at the intersection of character development and AI—considering the role that emerging technologies may have on the acquisition of virtue. This has led to the development of an in-class workbook called “Drafted” which considers writing a formative exercise that has potential to build the intellectual virtues of humility, honesty, and tenacity. The workbook employs what she calls “Slow Thinking Pedagogy.” She is currently working on a book related to these themes called “The Cost of Convenience,” which considers when and why certain shortcuts come at a cost to developing good character.

Date and Time

2-3.30pm AEST, 23 September 2025

Mode

Online free webinar