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Yong Zhao, Director
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Yong Zhao is a University Distinguished Professor in the Department of Counseling, Educational Psychology, and Special Education at the College of Education, Michigan State University, where he also serves as the Founding Director of the Center for Teaching and Technology as well as the Director of the US-China Center for Research on Educational Excellence. Zhao is also Associate Director of the International Network for Educational Transformation, a U. K.-based organization that promotes global exchanges of educational innovations. He is a fellow of the International Academy for Education.
Dr. Zhao received his BA in English Language Teaching from China’s Sichuan International Studies University in 1986 and his M.A. and Ph.D in Education from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. He joined the faculty at Michigan State University in 1996.
Dr. Zhao’s research interests include diffusion of innovations, teacher adoption of technology, computer-assisted language learning, globalization and education, and international and comparative education. Zhao has published extensively in these areas. His articles have appeared in AERJ and Teachers College Record. He received the 2003 Raymond B. Catell Early Career Award from the American Educational Research Association. This award recognizes “a scholar who has conducted a distinguished program of cumulative educational research in any field of educational inquiry within the first decade following receipt of their doctoral degree.”
Zhao has extensive international experiences. He has consulted with government and educational agencies and spoken on educational issues in many countries including Chile, China, Ireland, Singapore, Thailand, and Vietnam. He is currently leading the Education Research Group of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) education network (EDNET). His current work focuses on the impact of globalization on education and the integration of Eastern and Western educational practices.
http://zhao.educ.msu.edu |
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William Schmidt,
Co-Director |
William H. Schmidt received his undergraduate
degree in mathematics from Concordia College in River Forrest,
IL and his Ph.D. from the University of Chicago in psychometrics
and applied statistics. He carries the title of University Distinguished
Professor at Michigan State University and is currently co director
of the Education Policy Center. Previously he served as National
Research Coordinator and Executive Director of the US National
Center which oversaw participation of the United States in the
IEA sponsored Third International Mathematics and Science Study
(TIMSS). He was also a member of the Senior Executive
staff and Head of the Office of Policy Studies and Program Assessment
for the National Science Foundation in Washington, DC from 1986-1988.
He has published in numerous journals including the Journal
of the American Statistical Association, Journal of Educational
Statistics, and the Journal of Educational Measurement. He has
co-authored seven books including Why Schools Matter. His current
writing and research concerns issues of academic content in
K-12 schooling, assessment theory and the effects of curriculum
on academic achievement. He is also concerned with educational
policy related to mathematics, science and testing in general.
He was awarded the Honorary Doctorate Degree at Concordia University
in 1997 and received the1998 Willard Jacobson Lectureship from
The New York Academy of Sciences. |
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Wenzhong Yang,
Associate Director
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Wenzhong Yang, known as Eric
to his colleagues, joined the Center in 2004 as a research associate.
He received his M.A. in Sociology from Wuhan University and
his Ph. D in Educational Psychology from the University of Connecticut
with a concentration in gifted education and talent development.
He taught ESL in a high school for 4 years and introductory
sociology courses in Wuhan University in China for 3 years.
His research interests include gifted education, developing
and disseminating effective models of education that integrates
the strengths of both the Eastern and Western educational practices,
parenting (family influence and talent development), curriculum
compacting, bilingualism, and gender-related issues. He has
presented his work at a number of national and international
conferences related to gifted education, and has already published
a number of articles and has several more in preparation and/or
selected for publication. http://www.msu.edu/~yangwen |
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Ken Dirkin,
Chief Technology Officer |
Ken Dirkin is an award-winning
filmmaker and multimedia designer. His main position is
that of web developer and technology consultant for the US-China
Center. He has developed video and multimedia products
for a variety of clientele worldwide. |
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Lisa Payne,
Administrative Assistant
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Lisa Payne has been with the
College of Education at Michigan State University for 15 years.
She has worked with the Center for Teaching and Technology,
CEPSE Department, and Dean’s Office. |
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Nicole Ellefson,
Research Assistant
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Nicole Ellefson has a Master's Degree in Curriculum and Teaching from Michigan State University. She taught in public elementary schools for five years, working with kindergarten, fourth and fifth grades. As a teacher, Nicole explored how to best use technology with young children and received two grants from the state of Michigan to conduct professional development with her colleagues. Since leaving public school teaching, Nicole has worked on a variety of projects, including several to evaluate the uses of technology in schools. She is currently Senior Project Director for the US-China Center's 3E International Academy preschool project. |
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Nancy Romig,
Research Assistant
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Nancy Romig is a doctoral student in MSU's Learning, Technology, and
Culture program. She taught in public elementary schools for twelve
years, working with first, second, and third graders. As a teacher,
Nancy has participated in technology research programs to understand the educational benefits of technology with lower elementary children.
She is currently a Senior Project Director for the US-China Center's 3E
International Academy preschool project. |
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Wenying (Wendy) Zhou,
Research Assistant
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Wendy is a first-year doctoral student in MSU's Learning, Technology, and Culture program. She taught in Wuhan No. 1 Secondary School (now No. 1 High School) for ten years, teaching 7-12 graders English as second language. She holds a Master degree in educational psychology with a concentration in gifted education and talent development. She is one of the major contributors to the Center EGC Curriculum (Chinese part) and continues to contribute to the EGC project. |
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Naiyi Xie,
Research Assistant |
Naiyi Xie Naiyi is in her first year of doctoral study for the program of Educational Psychology and Educational Technology at MSU. She holds a Master degree in Educational Studies with the concentration of personal social development and literacy education from University of Warwick, UK. She received her BA in English Language and Literature from Beijing Foreign Studies University. Her research interests include language acquisition, L2 learning and teaching, and the use of technology to enhance language learning and teaching. With her unique expertise and experiences, we believe she will contribute greatly to our future endeavors. |
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Gaoming
Zhang,
Research Assistant |
Gaoming Zhang received her master degree from Michigan University in Literacy Instruction in May, 2004. Currently, she is a doctoral student in Learning, Technology and Culture in the Department of Counseling, Educational Psychology, and Special Education at Michigan State University. She was born in China and her interests include early literacy development and integration of technology in literacy instruction
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