Dr Zhenzhen Miao (苗侦桢, 苗偵楨) is currently Assistant Professor in Mathematics Education at Jiangxi Normal University, China, interested in the development, equity and quality of mathematics learning and teaching worldwide. She genuinely hopes high-quality research can inform practice and bring outstanding education to every child, regardless of their cultural, ethnic and socioeconomic backgrounds.
Zhenzhen believes in teaching, not only because, to her, teaching is a joyful activity, but also because teaching explains more variance in learning than schools. Naturally considering the experience of students as a teacher’s top priority, her teaching style has been interactive and engaging ever since the first day she became a teacher. Students enjoy discussing, debating and collaborating on her courses.
In addition to teaching undergraduate and postgraduate courses tailored for future teachers, educators and researchers, Zhenzhen is also keen to reach out to in-service teachers and educational administrators at various levels to bridge research, practice and policy. She has been frequently invited to provincial teaching research conferences (教研会议) in China and the National Professional Development (PD) Programme for Rural Teachers (国培计划) to give public lectures and deliver training courses, becoming widely known to mathematics teachers in Jiangxi province and beyond.
Zhenzhen’s research touches on classroom teaching and factors affecting teaching practices, including but not limited to behaviour, discourse, knowledge, beliefs and PD of teachers. She is interested in the power of classrooms as the teaching-and-learning blackbox and has faith in the importance of data collected in authentic classroom settings. Zhenzhen has visited hundreds of teachers in their classrooms in China and England, collecting data for both quantitative and qualitative analyses, and looks forward to visiting more teachers in more countries.
Whilst currently based in China, Zhenzhen has maintained a genuine interest in understanding education through both national and international lenses since her Masters and PhD studies at the University of Southampton, UK. She believes it is through collaboration within and across disciplines and borders that education can make a greater difference in the world.
RESEARCH INTERESTS
- Effectiveness, Equity and Improvement of Mathematics Education
- Curricula, Textbooks, Assessment and Evaluation
- International Comparisons and Collaborations in Education
- Philosophy, Methodology and Innovation of Educational Research
MEMBER
- American Educational Research Association (AERA)
- British Educational Research Association (BERA)
- British Society for Research into Learning Mathematics (BSRLM)
- The National Council of Teachers of Mathematics (NCTM)
- International Congress for School Effectiveness and Improvement (ICSEI)
BOARD & SERVICE
- Elected Board Member of Primary Mathematics Teaching & Learning Committee of Jiangxi Province, China
- Expert Inspector of Undergraduate Dissertations for Academic Degrees and Graduate Examination Development Center, Ministry of Education, China
- Examiner for the Teaching Part of the National Primary Mathematics Teacher Qualification Certificate in Jiangxi Province, China
Zhenzhen Miao, PhD 