Against the clock: Slow pedagogy, care, and relational time in the early years under neoliberalism

While juxtaposing the dominant neoliberal pressures of productivity and performativity with feminist perspectives on relationality and care, this colloquium examines the often overlooked and undervalued role of slowness in early childhood education and care. By analyzing an anecdote from infant caregiving, it highlights the pedagogical significance of slowness—reestablishing educators’ connection with time, honoring the unhurried pace of young children, and fostering their agency amid the relentless pressures of urgency against the clock. Reclaiming care, presence, and relational time actively challenges prevailing institutional norms and opens pathways for transformative education, inviting new possibilities for becoming otherwise.