Effectiveness of Mathematics Teaching in Primary Schools : Lessons from England and China

The Effectiveness of Mathematics Teaching in Primary Schools: Lessons from England and China provides a unique insight into the mathematics classrooms of these two countries and arrives at a time when the world is eager to know how Chinese learners consistently excel at learning mathematics and other core subjects.

Showcasing the kinds of teaching methods that work within and across countries, this book presents a rich collection of views, including those from teachers, their native colleagues, their foreign colleagues and the researcher, regarding the quality of mathematics teaching today. Interweaving scientific results about teaching and learning evaluations with multiple perspectives of various roles in and out of the classroom, Miao and Reynolds offer insights into how and why different approaches of teaching have led to different learning outcomes in mathematics internationally. Building on rigid and robust analyses of the most up-to-date data in England and China, the book indicates that it is through changing teaching rather than changing teachers that mathematics learning can be improved, because it is what teachers do in the classroom that really makes a big difference.

Containing four decades of wisdom from the field of teaching effectiveness research, this book is essential reading for all who want to improve the quality of mathematics teaching worldwide. This book is particularly relevant for educational researchers, postgraduate students and teachers, as well as school leaders, policymakers and parents.

Zhenzhen Miao is Lecturer at the College of Elementary Education, Jiangxi Normal University, China. She completed her PhD under the supervision of Professor David Reynolds at the University of Southampton and had worked as a research assistant at the University of Aberdeen in the fourth year of her PhD. Zhenzhen’s research interests are inspired by her experiences of being a mother and a former award-winning mathematics and English teacher in China. She has a strong interest in the STEM subjects, especially mathematics.

David Reynolds (CBE) is Professor of Education at Swansea University. He has published 20 books and more than 200 articles and book chapters. He is one of the founders of the field of School Effectiveness and School Improvement (SESI), the SESI Journal and the International Congress for School Effectiveness and Improvement (ICSEI). David has advised, lectured and/or consulted in over 50 countries over the years.