Appendix 26. FAQs for Parents

APPENDIX 26

FAQS FOR PARENTS

Frequently Asked Questions for Parents

This document has answers to some questions that parents might have about the MSHS Study.

Q. What is the Migrant and Seasonal Head Start Study?

A. The Migrant and Seasonal Head Start (MSHS) Study will collect information from MSHS programs, centers and families from all over the United States. The MSHS Study will describe the characteristics of MSHS services and the families that use MSHS services. This information will help MSHS programs to improve their services.

Q. Who is conducting the MSHS Study?

A. The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Administration for Children and Families, is sponsoring the study. This is the government agency that oversees MSHS. The study is being conducted by Abt Associates, The Catholic University of America and Westat. Abt Associates is working with MSHS directors, Office of Head Start leadership, and child development and MSHS experts to make sure that the study meets the needs of MSHS programs.

Q. Who will collect data for the study?

A. Sometime between spring 2017 and spring 2018, a small study team will visit your MSHS center for a few days. During this time they will assess children who were randomly selected to be part of the study and whose parents have given permission for them to participate. They will also conduct interviews with parents, conduct surveys with teachers and assistant teachers, and observe classrooms.

Q. What will you ask parents to do?

A. We will invite parents to complete an interview. The interviewer will ask you questions about yourself, your family, and your family’s experience with MSHS. You will receive $30 cash for your time.

Q. What will you ask children to do?

A. We will also do a set of activities with children at the MSHS center. These activities will help us learn about children’s development. If your child is a toddler or preschooler, staff will do some activities with your child to measure things like language and literacy skills. They will ask your child to look at pictures, copy drawings, write, listen to a story and answer a few questions – just like what your child does at the center. We will ask for your permission before doing these activities. Each child will receive a small gift for his/her time.

Q. How long will this take?

A. For parents, the interview will take about an hour. For children, the activities will take about 30 minutes for children up to 3 years old and 40 minutes for 4- and 5-year olds.

Q. How did you pick parents and children for the study?

A. Classrooms were randomly picked from all classrooms in your MSHS center. Some children in those classrooms were then randomly picked. These children and their parents were invited to be in the study. Only children whose parents give permission will be included in the study.

Q. Do parents need to be there for the child assessment?

A. No, parents do not need to be there. The MSHS child assessments will be done during the day while children are normally at the center.

Q. When will the study take place?

A. The study begins in spring 2017 and ends in spring 2018.

Q. Do I have to participate in the study?

A. No, you do not have to participate in the study. We hope you will be part of the MSHS Study, in order to provide your important views on MSHS! But if you decide not to participate, it will not affect your or your child’s MSHS services now or in the future.

Q. How will my privacy be protected?

A. Abt Associates agrees to protect the privacy of all study participants. All staff working on the study are required to sign the Westat Data Collector Code of Conduct and Assurance of Confidentiality Agreement. All study staff are trained on the importance of protecting the privacy of each participant. The study team will give ACF the information that is collected from families and staff, but we will not include your name or other information that can be used to identify you. To help us protect the privacy of study participants, we obtained a Certificate of Confidentiality from the National Institutes of Health. With this Certificate, the study team cannot be forced to disclose information that may identify any study participants, even by a court subpoena, in any federal, state, or local civil, criminal, administrative, legislative, or other proceedings. However, if we learn that someone is in danger, by law we must report this.

Q. Who do I contact if I have questions about the MSHS Study?

A. Please contact [ONSITE COORDINATOR NAME] with any questions you have about the study. You can also send questions to the MSHS study team by emailing XXX@XXX, or calling XXX-XXX-XXXX toll free. If you have questions or concerns about your rights as a study participant, please call the Abt Institutional Review Board toll-free at 1-877-520-6835.

Paperwork Reduction Act Statement: The referenced collection of information is voluntary. An agency may not conduct or sponsor, and a person is not required to respond to, a collection of information unless it displays a currently valid OMB control number. The OMB control number for this collection is xxxx-xxxx and it expires XX/XX/XXXX. The time required to complete this collection of information is estimated to average 40minutes, including the time to review instructions, search existing data resources, gather the data needed, and complete and review the collection of information. If you have comments concerning the accuracy of the time estimate(s) or suggestions for improving this form, please write to: Abt Associates, 55 Wheeler Street, Cambridge MA 02138 Attention: Linda Caswell.