The photopolymerization of methyl methacrylate initiated by annealed quantum-sized ZnO particles was studied in unstirred 2-propanol solutions. Polymer formation proceeds via a free radical pathway with an activation energy of E(a) = 19.7 kT mol(-1). Autoaccelerated polymerization was not observed, and the experimental evidence suggests that the mechanism of the process is different from the simple mechanism of polymerization in stirred solutions of nonannealed ZnO particles. The kinetic results as well as the solvent effects are explained under the assumption that initiation, propagation, and termination reactions take place preferentially on the surface of the oxide particles. Predominantly syndiotactic poly(methyl methacrylate) is the product of the photopolymerization reaction, and unoriented samples of the polymer exhibit an unusual crystallinity.