Publications

Peer-Reviewed Articles
  1. Zhu, M.M., Alberts, K.M., & Bork, W. (2021). “Self-regulation and intercultural competence: Examining the role of self-regulation in supporting preservice teachers,” Accepted with revisions: Intercultural Education.
  2. ​Rich, K. M., Yadav, A., & Zhu, M. M. (2019). Levels of abstraction in students’ mathematics strategies: what can applying computer science ideas about abstraction bring to elementary mathematics? Journal of Computers in Mathematics and Science Teaching, 38(3), 267-298.
  3. Bork, W. & Zhu, M.M. (2021). “Investigating culturally patterned teacher noticing using video-cued interview,” Under review: ZDM Mathematics Education

Book Chapters
  1. Alberts, K. M., Lee, A. A., &  Zhu, M. M. (in press). Developing students’ intercultural competence through educational psychology. In J. S. Vogler, & M. M. Buehl (Eds.), Theory to practice: Educational psychology for teachers and teaching (pp. XX–XX). Information Age Publishing, Inc.

Conference Presentations
  1. Zhu, M.M. & Alberts, K. (2021, Apr 8 - 12) “They Might be Normal Like White People”: Examining Preservice Teachers’ Self-Regulation and Intercultural Competence [Round Table Session]. AERA Annual Virtual Meeting iPoster Session
  2. Lee, A., Alberts, K., Zhu, M.M., & Wong, D. (2020). “But… Americans don’t have a culture!”: Leveraging Psychology Instruction to Develop Students’ Intercultural Competence. Symposium presentation submitted for the Society for the Teaching of Psychology’s Annual Conference on Teaching, Pittsburgh, PA. Online Session
  3. Rich, K., Yadav, A. & Zhu, M.M. (2020, Apr 17 - 21) Bringing Levels of Abstraction to Mathematics Problem Solving [Structured Poster Session]. AERA Annual Meeting San Francisco, CA http://tinyurl.com/yxgt3v7v
  4. Zhu, M.M. & Zheng, B. (2020, Apr 17 - 21) Medical Students' Self-Directed Technology Use: A Scoping Review [Paper Session]. AERA Annual Meeting San Francisco, CA http://tinyurl.com/rlwauzc
  5. Zheng, B. & Zhu, M.M. (2020, Apr 17 - 21) Medical Students' Self-Regulated Learning Using Digital Technologies [Poster Session]. AERA Annual Meeting San Francisco, CA http://tinyurl.com/t7jmld7 ​​

Current Projects


Cross-Cultural Approaches to Mathematics Education
  1. Investigating Culturally Patterned Teacher Noticing Using Video-cued Interview. This study examines how middle school mathematics teachers from the US and HK attend, interpret, and respond to lessons from two cultural contexts (US and Hong Kong). We used video-cued methods to elicit teachers' noticing, then thematically analyzed the ways in which their observations were consistent with cultural values and beliefs about teaching and learning. The findings from this project has been presented at AERA and an original manuscript currently under review in ZDM Mathematics Education.
  2. Exploring the East-West Divide: Examining US and Chinese Teachers' Personal and Cultural Beliefs about Mathematics. This project uses survey and interview methods to investigate US and Chinese middle school mathematics teachers' personal and cultural beliefs about teaching and learning mathematics. Through these  data sources, I examined whether traditional "Western" and "Eastern" educational values still shape contemporary American and Chinese teachers' ideas about teaching and learning. This results of this study has been submitted as an original manuscript currently under review in the International Journal of Science and Mathematics Education. 
  3. Culturally Shaped Noticing: The Role of Personal and Cultural Beliefs on Teacher Noticing. This project uses a combination of survey and video-cued methods to elicit US and Chinese teachers' responses to two different instructional styles (a student-centered lesson and a teacher-directed lesson). I was especially interested in examining the role of teachers' personal beliefs and cultural beliefs in shaping their interpretations and responses t0 different instructional styles. The results of this study is currently under review as a paper presentation at AERA. 
​
Promoting Interculturally Competent Teaching and Learning
  1. Developing Preservice Teachers' Intercultural Competence.​ I conducted a mixed-methods case study which examined the relationship between preservice teachers’ self-regulation skills and their intercultural learning outcomes in a teacher education course. The results support the hypothesis that self-regulation skills, particularly self-monitoring and self-evaluation, contribute to intercultural learning and application outcomes. From this work, I completed an original manuscript which has been accepted with revisions into Intercultural Education. 
  2. Applying Global Learning to Teacher Education. Global Learning fellow, I was given the opportunity to design a global learning component for Reflections on Teaching and Learning, an undergraduate teacher preparation course. To promote global learning, I developed the PenPal Learning project which partners students with digital pen pals from classrooms around the world. Students create teaching statements, lesson plans, and motivation plans that are tailored to global classroom
    contexts. I also organized intercultural mentoring opportunities such as inviting teachers from various countries to attend a virtual conference panel to share their experiences with my students. My involvement in this project led to a published book chapter in Theory to practice: Educational psychology for teachers and teaching . We also conducted a workshop for teacher educators at STP.    ​

Future Research Plans


Bridging Western and East Asian Approaches to Mathematics Education.​ The findings from my previous projects spark the following questions: “How can the knowledge systems, assets, and resources from East Asian cultures inform, challenge, and expand Western approaches to teaching and learning? How can these insights be integrated into the professional
development to promote the cross-cultural professional learning?”. To address these issues, I intend to work with teachers and scholars from the U.S., mainland China, and Hong Kong to develop a culturally representative model of teacher noticing that draws upon the strengths of Western and East Asian perspectives on mathematics education. This theoretical framework will
then be used to inform the design of professional development programs that equip teachers with critical ways to promote the inclusion of all students.

Developing ICC Training and Assessments for BIPOC student teachers. Research suggests that BIPOC individuals’ results on popular assessments such as the intercultural development inventory (IDI) do not align with their actual experiences
according to interview data [13]. This disconnect may be due to the fact that the IDI leaves out the role of systemic racism and structural inequalities in intercultural relationships. My work in this area will contribute towards developing a better understanding of BIPOC student teachers’ conceptualizations of intercultural competence, and their experiences of
ICC training and assessments. I will take a grounded theory approach to capture BIPOC student teachers’ experiences through interviews, surveys, and artifacts.

​Exploring the Impact of Interculturally Competent Teaching on BIPOC Students. Apart from working with student teachers, one of my longer-term goals is to research the impact of interculturally competent teaching on student learning. One question I plan to explore is “How do interculturally competent teaching and global learning practices affect BIPOC students’ sense of belonging and participation?”. To do this, I will design field-based learning experiences around interculturally competent teaching and collect data in the form of observations, artifacts, surveys, and interviews.