Professor Zhang is the founder of the “Educational Mathematics” approach in China. He has long been dedicated to researching how to make mathematics easier to learn and teach, with sustained work in fundamental mathematics education, machine theorem proving, and intelligent mathematics education technology. His influence on mathematics teaching reform in primary and secondary schools has been profound.

    During the communication, the math staff engaged in discussions with Professor Zhang, focusing on real teaching scenarios in lower Secondary math lessons. They proposed some common questions in fundamental math teaching—in particular, how to integrate the traditional pedagogue into a broader context of international education, how to conduct teaching efficiently and with high quality, and how to put AI tools to work appropriately in teaching and learning. Professor Zhang answered by his reflections and thoughts via his experience on fundamental education and the application of intelligent math tools. He encouraged the teachers that the essence of math education lies in enabling students to truly understand the nature of math, rather than dogmatically memorizing formulas and theorems, that it is necessary to balance imparting knowledge and protecting students’ curiosity and thirst for learning.

    At the end, the Math Department presented Professor Zhang with a copy of Euler’s Elements of Algebra, a translated work completed collectively by the group, and expressed sincere gratitude for the preface he wrote for the book.