German educator noted for his application of Johann Friedrich Herbart's educational precepts to the German elementary school.

Ziller attended the University of Leipzig, where he came under the influence of followers of Herbart, and in 1853 became a lecturer there. In 1862 he opened his own pedagogical seminary, and in 1869 he established the Association for Scientific Pedagogy—a centre for German Herbartians. Ziller was a strong proponent of Herbart's emphasis on the moral end of education, and Ziller attempted to show how every part of elementary instruction could contribute to the forming of a strong character.