Purpose of the QUEST: We would like to invite you to participate in a research study conducted by Drs. Tracy Spinrad, Richard Fabes, and Carol Martin of the Sanford School of Social and Family Dynamics at Arizona State University in collaboration with Child Trends, a research management company focused on improving the lives of children, youth, and families.
The purpose of this study is to understand how child care programs that participate in Quality First help children learn, grow and be ready for kindergarten. Quality First, a program of First Things First, helps child care and preschool providers improve their quality through coaching, funding and specialized assistance. Programs also earn a star rating based on quality standards.
This study will help First Things First show the importance of continued support of the Quality First program in Arizona. The results will be shared with potential funders, policymakers and community partners.
What the study means for you?
You are eligible to participate in this study if you are:
- A teacher at an early child care program participating in Quality First and have students who will enter kindergarten in Fall 2026
- 18 years or older
If you agree to participate in this research study, you will be asked to:
- Distribute child consent packets electronically (and via paper if preferred) to parents of children in your classroom who will attend Kindergarten during the next school year.
- Fill out one survey in the fall about you and your classroom (classroom survey) and one survey about each participating child (child survey) in the Fall and in the Spring. The classroom survey will take approximately 10 minutes to complete. Each child survey will take approximately 15-20 minutes to complete. The child survey will capture information about each child’s language, literacy, math, physical, and social-emotional development.
- Allow a member of our research team to administer individual developmental assessments to the participating children in your classroom both in the fall and spring semesters. The assessments will take each child approximately 20-30 minutes to complete.
Will we be paid for participating?
If you choose to participate, you will receive $15 in personal compensation for the classroom survey and $25 in personal compensation per child survey completed (as an example, if 5 children in your classroom participate in the study, you can earn $15 for the classroom survey and $125 for the child surveys each semester). You can be paid by check or by giftcard. The payments will be distributed after the first round of surveys in the fall; another payment will be distributed in the spring after completion of additional classroom and child surveys. Monies will be distributed via check or via gift card (it is your choice).
What are my rights as a research participant?
Your participation in this study is completely voluntary. If you choose not to participate or to withdraw from the study at any time, there will be no penalty, and it will not affect your participation in Quality First programs nor your program’s star rating. However, withdrawal will result in the forfeiture of any future payments.
Are there any benefits or risks?
Direct benefits of this study to you include the monetary compensation for your time and effort. To our knowledge, there are no risks from your participation.
Will your information be kept private?
We take your privacy very seriously.
Your responses to all surveys will be kept strictly confidential. Your name, name of your child care program, and any other identifying information will be separated from all surveys and an identification number will be assigned. Data will be collected via a secure, private-cloud environment called REDCap which is managed by Child Trends. All deidentified survey data will be stored on encrypted, password-protected electronic servers and will only be used/viewed by approved project staff (Including staff from ASU, Child Trends, and First Things First). The results of this study may be used in reports, presentations, or publications, but your name and any other identifying information will not be used, and results will only be shared in aggregate form (i.e. trends among all teachers surveyed/observed).
Who can I contact if I have questions or concerns about this research study?
If you or your child have any questions about the study or anything you have read here, please contact: Dr. Tracy Spinrad at 480-727-7925 or by email at [email protected]
If you have any questions about your rights as a participant in this research, you can contact the Arizona State University Social Behavioral Institutional Review Board (IRB) at: (480) 965-6788 or by email at [email protected].
