Someone once said that “everyone needs to have at least one good mathematics teacher”. I was fortunate to have more than one, and, as I have developed my career in Education, I have been lucky enough to learn from, and work with, some other great teachers. For my PGCE (in mathematics education) my tutor was Margaret Brown, for my first teaching job (in inner London) the Head of Department was Dylan Wiliam (in a school headed by Michael Marland), and I studied, and later worked, with Celia Hoyles and Richard Noss at the Institute of Education in London. Taking up my post at Southampton (a University with an international reputation in mathematics education stretching back to the early 1960s, and beyond) gave me the chance to work with Geoffrey Howson.

Studying mathematics education, and working with teachers and pupils, continues to drive me. It is a fascinating subject to teach, learn, and study. How does someone learn about the abstract ideas that are at the heart of mathematics? How should mathematics be taught? How is knowledge acquisition mediated by the available tools and activities, especially computer-based tools? These are the sorts of questions I work on and publish about.

My research focuses on the socio-cultural development of mathematical reasoning and the design of learning environments. My current research interests encompass the acquisition and use of mathematical knowledge in different cultural settings, the development of mathematical reasoning in students (especially their intuitive knowledge), and the integration of technology in the teaching and learning of mathematics. I have more than 90 publications, including books, book chapters, journal articles, and research reports. For any mathematicians reading this, my Erdös Number is 3.

In addition to researching and teaching at Masters and research level, I co-ordinate the Geometry Working Group for the British Society for Research into Learning Mathematics (BSRLM). From 2000-2003, I was leader of the working group on Tools and Technologies in Mathematics Didactics for the European Society for Research in Mathematics Education (ERME) and from 1999-2001 I was an invited member of the Royal Society working group on the Teaching and learning of geometry in schools. In terms of international cooperation, I was an invited member of the International Commission on Mathematics Instruction (ICMI) research reviews on the teaching of geometry for the 21st century (1995-8) and the teaching and learning of mathematics at university level (1998-2001). I am a reviewer for a number of scientific journals in mathematics education and have led and worked on projects funded by the Economic and Social Research Council (ESRC), the Qualifications and Curriculum Authority (QCA), and the Teacher Training Agency (TTA, now the TDA).

A particular attraction of being at Southampton is being able to cycle to the University across Southampton common - all year round! The city is a lovely place to live and work, with sea, forest, historic towns, and country pubs all within easy reach. This gives me lots of things to enjoy with my family, especially as my boys grow up to beat me at football, swimming, cycling and music.