SCHOOL BOARD OR LOCAL SPONSORING AGENCY LETTERHEAD
Human Early Learning Partnership
University of British Columbia
440–2206 East Mall Vancouver
BC Canada V6T 1Z3
Understanding Middle Childhood: The Middle Years Development Instrument (MDI)
MDI Survey AdministratorInformation Letter
Principal Investigator:Kimberly A. Schonert-Reichl, Ph.D., Director, Human Early Learning Partnership, Faculty of Medicine, UBC (Telephone: 604-822-1879)
Co-Investigators:Martin Guhn, Ph.D., Human Early Learning Partnership, Faculty of Medicine, UBC (Telephone: 604-827-5784)
Shelley Hymel, Ph.D., Faculty of Education, UBC (Telephone: 604-822-6022)
Magdalena Janus, Ph.D., Magdalena Janus, Ph.D., Affiliate Associate Professor, School of Population and Public Health, UBC (Telephone: 905-521-2100)
Project Contact:Lisa Pedrini, MDI National Scale-out Manager,Human Early Learning Partnership (HELP), Faculty of Medicine, UBC (Telephone: 1-888-908-4050)
Date:October 2017
Dear MDI Survey Administrator:
We invite you to participate in an important research project being conducted this upcomingNovember and December in your school board and in other schools across Canada. This study will help us understand how children think and feel about their lives, both inside and outside of school during ages 9 to 13 (middle childhood years). Students in Grade 4 and/or Grade 7will be asked to share their views by answering questions on the Middle Years Development Instrument (MDI). The MDI survey questions ask about areas of child development that are strongly linked to well-being, health and academic achievement. The project is administered by researchers at the Human Early Learning Partnership (HELP) at the University of British Columbia (UBC) in partnership with the Calgary Catholic School Districtand funded bythe J. W. McConnell Family Foundation and the Max Bell Foundation. The information collected in this study helps inform educational and community efforts to improve the lives of children.
What is involved in project participation?
Your participation involves administering the MDI survey to your students.Your taking part is voluntary and will not affect any services that you receive from your school board. The MDI will be completed by your Grade 4 and/or Grade 7 students and administered during regular school hours. You will receive a manual from your school board with instructions on how to administer the MDI. Students fill out the survey online. The entire survey takes students approximately one to two class periods to complete. The survey can be administered over the course of a day or over multiple days within a four-week time period.
Note that students will complete the surveys individually. Due to the language-based nature of the surveys, you will be asked to determine if children who are English language learners and/or who have difficulty understanding the questions will be able to participate in the study. A voiceover function for students to hear questions read aloud is available, and requires the use of headphones.
Your students have the right to refuse or withdraw from the study at any time, even after they complete the survey. Your students do not have to answer any question that they do not want to answer. If your students choose not to participate, they can be provided an activity that is related to the regular school curriculum. Refusing to participate or withdrawal will not affect your students’ education in any way. We can identify no risks involved with this study.
What data are collected?
The MDI questions ask children about five areas of development and well-being: 1) social and emotional development; 2) feelings of connectedness to school, family, friends, and communities; 3) school experiences; 4) physical health and well-being; and 5) time use during the after school hours.
There are questions on the MDI that ask the studentabout problems that he/she may be having with classmates. For this reason, students have the option to confidentially request help followingthe survey. If astudentasks for help in this way, their teacher and/or principal will be notified by email and are asked to follow the procedures outlined by yourschool for assisting students.
How is students’ privacy protected?
Student privacy is extremely important to us. Students’ names are never collected on the actualsurvey. Your school does not keep a copy of the survey and no information is added to your students’ school record. Because the results of the study are reported at the group-level only, your students’ survey information will never be given to anyone or made public in any way. Personal identification data, such as student education number, date of birth, postal code,and demographic data are needed for data linkage and research purposes only. For confidentiality reasons, personal identification data is stored separately from the MDI data in a secure research environment. School board contacts work directly with school administrators and the MDI Project Coordinator to ensure safe handling of all student data.
How will the MDI data be used and stored?
MDI data held at HELP are used in research projects to better understand and measure areas of middle child development that contribute to children’s well-being, health, and school success. MDI data are also linked at the individual level with other data such as education and health information, and Early Development Instrument (EDI) data (the EDI is a survey on children’s development in kindergarten). These linked data can only be used for research or statistical purposes by HELP approved researchers, under an approved Research Agreement. Researchers who receive permission to use the MDI data for research or statistical purposes will be provided data that cannot be connected to any individual student.
HELP is responsible for keeping all MDI study data safe and only approves access to data under Federal, Provincial & Territorial privacy and security legislation. HELP will share individual-level MDI data and personal information with the school board for approved research, planning and evaluation purposes only, under an Information Sharing Agreement.
Your students’ date of birth, education number, and postal code are personal information that is stored separately from your students’ answers to the survey. This is to protect your students’ privacy. Your students’ personal information is stored in a secure research environment at UBC and partner institutions, to be used only for approved linkage and research projects. HELP and external partners follow government legislation to keep all MDI study data secure.For concerns related to the privacy of your students’ survey data, please contact HELP’s Privacy Officer at .
How are the data reported?
MDI dataare reported only for groups ofchildren, in the neighbourhood, in a schoolor across a school board. HELP researchers also create public maps and community summary reports of the results which are available through the HELP website:
HELP will provide the schoolboard with an overall school boardreport and reports of the MDI results for each individual school. HELP does not shareindividual schoolresults publicly. None of this information will be used to rank schools, students, or classes in any way.For privacy reasons, HELP does not create a report for any schools where there are fewer than five students completing the MDI.
How will yourschool board and community benefit?
Researchers, educators, parents, and policy makers across Canada can use MDI results to make decisions about programs or initiatives. Research using MDI data canidentify where there are large neighbourhood differences in the number of children who are healthy and feel supported by schools and communities. Schools, program planners, and community members have accessto children’s voices through the MDI results, and so can better create environments to help children thrive.
Where can I get more information on the study?
For further information please visit HELP’s website at: If you have any questions about the project and the collection and disclosure of information, please contact Lisa Pedrini, MDI National Scale-out Manager, via e-mail at or by phone at 1-888-908-4050, or (insert local MDI Contact).
If you have any concerns or complaints about your rights as a research participant and/or your experiences while participating in this study, contact the Research Participant Complaint Line in the UBC Office of Research Ethics at 604-822-8598 or if long distance e-mail or call toll-free 1-877-822-8598. If you have any questions or concerns regarding this project, you may contact the principal investigator at the number or email provided below.
Sincerely,
______
Name, LocalMDI Contact
Title within School Board or City
Telephone: #
Email: ---
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