Iram Siraj
Biographic Data
| ID | 136897 |
|---|---|
| NAME | Iram Siraj |
| GIVEN NAMES | Iram |
| FAMILY NAME | Siraj |
| SIGNATURE | SIRAJ I |
| AFFILIATIONS | University of Oxford |
| ORCID | 0000-0001-6752-881X |
| VERIFIED | Yes |
| TOTAL WORKS | 21 |
| TOTAL CITATIONS | 14 |
| WORKS AS AUTHOR | 21 |
| WORKS AS EDITOR | 0 |
| FIRST PUBLICATION YEAR | 2015 |
| LATEST PUBLICATION YEAR | 2026 |
| H-INDEX | 2 |
Assessing school readiness domains in a large cohort of refugee children
Despite the growing global presence of refugee populations, few validated tools exist to assess early learning and development in these contexts. This study examined the use of the International Development and Early Learning Assessment (IDELA) with a large sample of 1033 refugee children aged 4–6 years living in Malaysia, a non-resettlement, low- to middle-income country. Using Rasch modelling, we evaluated the psychometric properties of IDELA a…
Quality of early childhood education in Pakistan
High-quality early childhood education (ECE) is critical for children’s development, yet evidence from low- and middle-income countries (LMICs) remains limited. This study examined the structural (teacher education, ECE training, age, experience, class size, and ratio) and process quality (global and interactional) of ECE classrooms and child outcomes across 52 public, private, and non-profit schools in Karachi, Pakistan. Findings revealed that w…
Strengthening Ecec Workforce Systems in Low-Resource Contexts
Even though the majority of the world’s under 5-year-olds live in low- and middle-income countries (LMIC), our knowledge about the systems and architectures which support and sustain ECEC workforce quality is dominated by evidence from high-income countries (HIC). Drawing on a three-round Delphi study of consensus around essential training needs for early childhood staff in low-resourced contexts conducted among fourteen global experts over a per…
Quality in Chinese Preschool Classrooms
Research Findings: Process quality, reflecting teacher instructional methodologies and teacher-child interactional quality, directly impacts child outcomes and has become a focal point as early childhood education and care (ECEC) programs expand globally. This expansion underscores the urgency of establishing suitable structural and professional standards. To contribute to this discourse, this study aims to investigate the structural influencing …
A systematic review of ethnic representation in UK research involving children and young people living in care
A substantial and growing number of children in care in the UK are of minoritized ethnicities. Increasing evidence of inequalities faced by the UK’s children in care from different ethnic groups highlights the need for research that represents the ethnic diversity of children in care. This systematic review aimed to determine the frequency and manner of ethnicity reporting amongst studies of children in care in the UK from 2012 to 2024. Seven dat…
The preschool home learning environment in families living with disadvantage
Promoting Teaching and Learning Through Research-Informed Professional Development
The fragmented provision of training for early childhood educators has highlighted the imperative need for research-informed professional development (PD) programmes to enhance educator professionalism. This study evaluates the effectiveness of a research-informed in-service PD programme—“Leadership for Learning”—through cluster randomised controlled trials in Australia and China. In Australia, the study involved 83 early-years services, and 1346…
Promoting effective teaching and learning through a professional development program
Exploring children’s exposure to voice assistants and their ontological conceptualizations of life and technology
Digital Voice Assistants (DVAs) have become a ubiquitous technology in today’s home and childhood environments. Inspired by (Bernstein and Crowley, J Learn Sci 17:225–247, 2008) original study ( n = 60, age 4–7 years) on how children’s ontological conceptualizations of life and technology were systematically associated with their real-world exposure to robotic entities, the current study explored this association for children in their middle chil…
Drivers of the socio-economic disadvantage gap in England
BackgroundSocio-economic status (SES) is a powerful predictor of attainment. Research has identified multiple mechanisms that underpin the effect of SES on attainment. For example, self-regulation (processes through which individuals direct and control their attention, emotion and behaviour) has been identified as one mechanism mediating the SES attainment gap. However, previous studies have not directly tested the statistical pathways by which c…
Exploring the Associations among Chinese Kindergartners between Academic Achievement and Behavioral, Cognitive and Emotional Self-Regulation
Research Findings: Self-regulation is an important determinant of children’s developmental outcomes, but little research has explored its different facets simultaneously. This study aims to explore a sample of Chinese children’s behavioral, cognitive and emotional self-regulation characteristics by examining their gender and age differences, associations with academic outcomes and the moderating effects of age and gender on these associations. Re…
Profiles of Chinese preschoolers' academic and social–emotional development in relation to classroom quality
Linking classroom quality to separate domains of child development might neglect the transactional interactions across developmental domains. This research utilized latent profiles across academic and social–emotional development to explore which aspects of classroom quality can predict children's profiles at the classroom level. Data were drawn from 96 preschool classrooms and 547 children (3–5 years old) in China in 2020. Multilevel latent prof…
Anthropomorphizing Technology
‘Anthropomorphism’ is a popular term in the literature on human-technology engagements, in general, and child-technology engagements, in particular. But what does it really mean to ‘anthropomorphize’ something in today’s world? This conceptual review article, addressed to researchers interested in anthropomorphism and adjacent areas, reviews contemporary anthropomorphism research, and it offers a critical perspective on how anthropomorphism resea…
Researching Pre-school Teachers’ Knowledge of Oral Language Pedagogy Using Video
The Observing Language Pedagogy (OLP) tool uses videos of authentic classroom interactions to elicit the procedural knowledge which pre-school teachers can access, activate and use to support classroom decision-making. Three facets are captured: perceiving (the ability to identify salient language-supporting strategies); naming (the use of specific professional vocabulary to describe interactions); and interpreting (the ability to interpret the i…
A validation and reliability study of the Movement Environmental Rating Scale (Movers)
The aim of this study was to determine the validity and reliability of the Movement Environment Rating Scale (MOVERS), using data from 13 early childhood education and care (ECEC) settings. Test-retest reliability was calculated using ICCs, percentage agreement and weighted Kappa. Internal consistency was examined using Cronbach’s alpha. To examine concurrent validity between the MOVERS and Sustained Shared Thinking and Emotional Well-being Scale…
Operationalizing Bronfenbrenner’s PPCT Model in Researching Human Development
Developing 21st century skills in early childhood
Alexa, What Are You? Exploring Primary School Children’s Ontological Perceptions of Digital Voice Assistants in Open Interactions
Today’s children grow up in an environment that is increasingly characterized by digital voice assistants (DVAs), such as Alexa, Siri, or the Google Assistant. This paper argues that any attempt to investigate children’s interactions with, and perceptions of, DVAs should be based on the theoretical grounds of an ontological framework that considers children’s genuine understanding of what it means to be human and what it means to be a machine. Ba…
The when and what of measuring ECE quality
Early Childhood Education (ECE)
The long-term role of the home learning environment in shaping students’ academic attainment in secondary school
Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to explore the relationships between the characteristics of the home learning environment (HLE) and students’ academic attainments in secondary school in England at age 14 and 16. Design/methodology/approach – This research study uses multilevel statistical models to investigate the strength and significance of relationships between various measures of the HLE at ages three, six, 11 and 14, and students’ aca…
The when and what of measuring ECE quality
The long-term role of the home learning environment in shaping students’ academic attainment in secondary school
Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to explore the relationships between the characteristics of the home learning environment (HLE) and students’ academic attainments in secondary school in England at age 14 and 16. Design/methodology/approach – This research study uses multilevel statistical models to investigate the strength and significance of relationships between various measures of the HLE at ages three, six, 11 and 14, and students’ aca…
Drivers of the socio-economic disadvantage gap in England
BackgroundSocio-economic status (SES) is a powerful predictor of attainment. Research has identified multiple mechanisms that underpin the effect of SES on attainment. For example, self-regulation (processes through which individuals direct and control their attention, emotion and behaviour) has been identified as one mechanism mediating the SES attainment gap. However, previous studies have not directly tested the statistical pathways by which c…
The long-term role of the home learning environment in shaping students’ academic attainment in secondary school
Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to explore the relationships between the characteristics of the home learning environment (HLE) and students’ academic attainments in secondary school in England at age 14 and 16. Design/methodology/approach – This research study uses multilevel statistical models to investigate the strength and significance of relationships between various measures of the HLE at ages three, six, 11 and 14, and students’ aca…
Early Childhood Education (ECE)
Operationalizing Bronfenbrenner’s PPCT Model in Researching Human Development
Developing 21st century skills in early childhood
Alexa, What Are You? Exploring Primary School Children’s Ontological Perceptions of Digital Voice Assistants in Open Interactions
Today’s children grow up in an environment that is increasingly characterized by digital voice assistants (DVAs), such as Alexa, Siri, or the Google Assistant. This paper argues that any attempt to investigate children’s interactions with, and perceptions of, DVAs should be based on the theoretical grounds of an ontological framework that considers children’s genuine understanding of what it means to be human and what it means to be a machine. Ba…
The when and what of measuring ECE quality
Researching Pre-school Teachers’ Knowledge of Oral Language Pedagogy Using Video
The Observing Language Pedagogy (OLP) tool uses videos of authentic classroom interactions to elicit the procedural knowledge which pre-school teachers can access, activate and use to support classroom decision-making. Three facets are captured: perceiving (the ability to identify salient language-supporting strategies); naming (the use of specific professional vocabulary to describe interactions); and interpreting (the ability to interpret the i…
A validation and reliability study of the Movement Environmental Rating Scale (Movers)
The aim of this study was to determine the validity and reliability of the Movement Environment Rating Scale (MOVERS), using data from 13 early childhood education and care (ECEC) settings. Test-retest reliability was calculated using ICCs, percentage agreement and weighted Kappa. Internal consistency was examined using Cronbach’s alpha. To examine concurrent validity between the MOVERS and Sustained Shared Thinking and Emotional Well-being Scale…
Anthropomorphizing Technology
‘Anthropomorphism’ is a popular term in the literature on human-technology engagements, in general, and child-technology engagements, in particular. But what does it really mean to ‘anthropomorphize’ something in today’s world? This conceptual review article, addressed to researchers interested in anthropomorphism and adjacent areas, reviews contemporary anthropomorphism research, and it offers a critical perspective on how anthropomorphism resea…
Exploring the Associations among Chinese Kindergartners between Academic Achievement and Behavioral, Cognitive and Emotional Self-Regulation
Research Findings: Self-regulation is an important determinant of children’s developmental outcomes, but little research has explored its different facets simultaneously. This study aims to explore a sample of Chinese children’s behavioral, cognitive and emotional self-regulation characteristics by examining their gender and age differences, associations with academic outcomes and the moderating effects of age and gender on these associations. Re…
Profiles of Chinese preschoolers' academic and social–emotional development in relation to classroom quality
Linking classroom quality to separate domains of child development might neglect the transactional interactions across developmental domains. This research utilized latent profiles across academic and social–emotional development to explore which aspects of classroom quality can predict children's profiles at the classroom level. Data were drawn from 96 preschool classrooms and 547 children (3–5 years old) in China in 2020. Multilevel latent prof…
Promoting Teaching and Learning Through Research-Informed Professional Development
The fragmented provision of training for early childhood educators has highlighted the imperative need for research-informed professional development (PD) programmes to enhance educator professionalism. This study evaluates the effectiveness of a research-informed in-service PD programme—“Leadership for Learning”—through cluster randomised controlled trials in Australia and China. In Australia, the study involved 83 early-years services, and 1346…
Promoting effective teaching and learning through a professional development program
Exploring children’s exposure to voice assistants and their ontological conceptualizations of life and technology
Digital Voice Assistants (DVAs) have become a ubiquitous technology in today’s home and childhood environments. Inspired by (Bernstein and Crowley, J Learn Sci 17:225–247, 2008) original study ( n = 60, age 4–7 years) on how children’s ontological conceptualizations of life and technology were systematically associated with their real-world exposure to robotic entities, the current study explored this association for children in their middle chil…
Drivers of the socio-economic disadvantage gap in England
BackgroundSocio-economic status (SES) is a powerful predictor of attainment. Research has identified multiple mechanisms that underpin the effect of SES on attainment. For example, self-regulation (processes through which individuals direct and control their attention, emotion and behaviour) has been identified as one mechanism mediating the SES attainment gap. However, previous studies have not directly tested the statistical pathways by which c…
Strengthening Ecec Workforce Systems in Low-Resource Contexts
Even though the majority of the world’s under 5-year-olds live in low- and middle-income countries (LMIC), our knowledge about the systems and architectures which support and sustain ECEC workforce quality is dominated by evidence from high-income countries (HIC). Drawing on a three-round Delphi study of consensus around essential training needs for early childhood staff in low-resourced contexts conducted among fourteen global experts over a per…
Quality in Chinese Preschool Classrooms
Research Findings: Process quality, reflecting teacher instructional methodologies and teacher-child interactional quality, directly impacts child outcomes and has become a focal point as early childhood education and care (ECEC) programs expand globally. This expansion underscores the urgency of establishing suitable structural and professional standards. To contribute to this discourse, this study aims to investigate the structural influencing …
A systematic review of ethnic representation in UK research involving children and young people living in care
A substantial and growing number of children in care in the UK are of minoritized ethnicities. Increasing evidence of inequalities faced by the UK’s children in care from different ethnic groups highlights the need for research that represents the ethnic diversity of children in care. This systematic review aimed to determine the frequency and manner of ethnicity reporting amongst studies of children in care in the UK from 2012 to 2024. Seven dat…
The preschool home learning environment in families living with disadvantage
Assessing school readiness domains in a large cohort of refugee children
Despite the growing global presence of refugee populations, few validated tools exist to assess early learning and development in these contexts. This study examined the use of the International Development and Early Learning Assessment (IDELA) with a large sample of 1033 refugee children aged 4–6 years living in Malaysia, a non-resettlement, low- to middle-income country. Using Rasch modelling, we evaluated the psychometric properties of IDELA a…
Quality of early childhood education in Pakistan
High-quality early childhood education (ECE) is critical for children’s development, yet evidence from low- and middle-income countries (LMICs) remains limited. This study examined the structural (teacher education, ECE training, age, experience, class size, and ratio) and process quality (global and interactional) of ECE classrooms and child outcomes across 52 public, private, and non-profit schools in Karachi, Pakistan. Findings revealed that w…
Psychology (15 works) · Early Childhood Education and Development (11 works) · Developmental psychology (9 works) · Computer Science (6 works) · Pedagogy (6 works) · Parental Involvement in Education (5 works) · Early childhood education (4 works) · Educational and Psychological Assessments (4 works) · Mathematics education (4 works) · Medical education (4 works)