Iram Siraj is Professor of Child Development and Education at the University of Oxford, UK. Denise Kingston is a senior researcher at the University of Oxford and honorary research fellow at the University of Sussex, UK. Edward Melhuish is Professor of Human Development at the University of Oxford, and Birkbeck, University of London.
As a thought leader in early childhood education and care, I have found the SSTEW scale, (part of the suite of resources known as the Curriculum, Leadership and Interaction Quality Rating Scales - CLIQRS) an essential tool to support quality improvement. I have used the scale with individual settings, across a large organisation to improve quality - Goodstart Early Learning, Australia, and also as part of a large English, Department of Education research - The Study of Early Education and Development (SEEED). At all levels the tool gives the teacher or researcher a clear overview of what is required to improve quality for children's learning in a systematic, and evidenced based approach. SSTEW is an uncomplicated resource which improves teacher's understanding of sustained shared thinking whilst supporting children's emotional well-being. Sue Robb, OBE, General Manager of Pedagogy and Practice, Goodstart Early Learning, Australia