Research team contacts

Principal Researcher:

Distinguished Professor Susan Danby, School of Early Childhood & Inclusive Education, QUT

Associate Researcher:

Associate Professor Maryanne Theobald, School of Early Childhood & Inclusive Education, QUT

Professor Annette Woods, School of Early Childhood & Inclusive Education, QUT

Professor Grace Sarra, School of Early Childhood & Inclusive Education, QUT

Research Centre / Group:

ARC Centre of Excellence for the Digital Child

What is the purpose of this research?

This study is interested in the many ways that parents, caregivers, and educators share information. The aim of the project is to discover how communication happens, who communicates, the frequency of communication, when and where different communication modes are utilised, and the reasons for communication.

You are invited to participate in this research project because you are a parent/caregiver or a centre director/teacher/educator/other staff member associated with a non-compulsory early education setting. We would like to hear from you about your experiences of communicating across home and early education settings.

Are you looking for people like me?

Parents, caregivers, centre directors, teachers, educators, and other staff of non-compulsory early education settings are invited to complete a survey about digital communication practices.

What will you ask me to do?

You will be asked to answer a short anonymous online survey about your communication experiences across early education settings. The survey will take approximately 15 minutes of your time to complete.

Example questions include:

  • Who have you communicated with?
  • How have you communicated (e.g. emails, text message, storypark)?
  • How often do you communicate?
  • What communication methods work best for you?

At the end of the survey, you will be asked if you would like to participate in the next phase of the research (Interviews and case studies). You will be taken to a separate link where you give us an email address for us to contact you. Your email address will not be stored with your survey responses.

Your participation is voluntary. Your decision to participate or not participate will in no way impact upon your current or future relationship with the Centre of Excellence for the Digital Child, your education setting or the participating universities. If you do agree to participate you can withdraw from the research project without comment or penalty by simply closing the survey window without submitting. However, as the survey does not request any personal identifying information once it has been submitted it will not be possible to withdraw.

Are there any risks for me in taking part?

There are minimal risks associated with your participation. You may be inconvenienced in time to complete the survey. We will take all reasonable steps to ensure that we make good use of your time, asking only the most important questions, making the survey available online so that it can be completed at any time and on your preferred device. Please know that you do not have to answer questions that you feel uncomfortable answering.

Are there any benefits for me in taking part?

Your participation is unlikely to benefit you directly, but it will help to provide insights about communication practices across home and non-compulsory early education settings.

Will I be compensated for my time?

We do appreciate your time in completing the survey, however, there is no compensation provided.

I am interested - what should I do next?

To find out more about the study and to complete the survey please follow the appropriate link below. The survey will take approximately 20 minutes to complete.

Parents and caregivers survey

ECEC staff survey

QUT Ethics Number: 5799