$30 Amazon Gift Card:
Help us test a new parenting app around reading
We are teaming up with Toddlers Can Read to better understand what parents like you want in a new app to help teach your child to read. Studies will occur in Denver and will take an hour.
Study Details:
We are looking at building a new app to parents teach their children ages 2 - 10 how to read without having to use a screen.
The session will last an hour. We may ask you to try out a new reading app in early stages of development before we visit you.
None of our interviews or research will be shown on Social Media - we want you to be yourself.
While we may not test the app with your child, we ask that your child be present, as sometimes we may want to test with you and your child who is learning to read.
Rolling Admissions - We will be conducting interviews across multiple months. We will be inviting a small group of parents to participate each week and will email you when you have been selected.
Your child can be at various reading levels, though we will be targeting parents who are NEW to teaching their child to read.
As this is a parent study, we will not interview parents multiple times for seperate children.
Our study will be done either at our lab in Laffayette, Colorado, in a community center, or at your home.
The study will be ongoing for the next year.
You do not need to have purchased or used anything from Toddlers Can Read.
If you and/or your child are comfortable with it, we may ask them to wear eye tracking glasses and an emotional sensor - this is not mandatory.
You will be asked to sign this consent form during your interview.
If you have any questions, please contact hedman@buildempathy.com.
Please Share:
We are testing a lot of parents. If you know anyone else who may want to participate, please forward this opportunity to them!
About the Researchers:
This research is being conducted by mPath, a Boulder based research company. The head researcher is Dr. Elliott Hedman. Elliott earned his Ph.D. at the MIT Media Lab where he worked on making better emotional experiences for children with technology. Elliott has been a literacy teacher at the Boys & Girls Club of Metro Denver and Denver Public School’s after school club.
mPath has helped companies like Starbucks, Hasbro, Lowe’s, Best Buy, and many other’s better understand their customers through user research and co-creation. At mPath, we use sensors, eye tracking, and other ethnographic methods to help children and adults better tell their experiences. You can find out more about mPath at www.buildempathy.com.
Frequently Asked Questions
When will the study start?
April 9, 2024
What ages are you recruiting?
Parents of Children ages 2-10
If I apply do I have to do the study?
No. We will send a second email if you are selected for you to pick a time. You can opt out at that time or any other time.
An emotional sensor?
Yes. We have an emotional sensor made at MIT that measure’s parents and children’s excitement. It’s not invasive, and is worn on the foot. You can find out more at www.buildempathy.com . If you or your child does not want to wear the sensor or eye tracking, they will not be required to.
Where will this study take place?
The study will take place at your home, a community center, or at our research facility in Boulder.
What Covid-19 Precautions will you be taking?
All researchers are vaccinated.
Will I have to sign a confidentiality agreement?
Yes.
My child is unique in a certain way (has ADHD, Dyslexia, homeschooled, in a wheel chair, etc.) can they sign up?
Yes, please do sign up. We really do want to test a diversity of children. There is a section in the application where you can describe anything special about your child.
Where can I sign up to find out about future opportunities like this one?
In the application, you can sign up to be emailed about future research opportunities.
Who are these researchers?
The research group running this is called mPath. mPath is a design research company that works with families and children to better understand what they want.
You’ll likely be working with the founder of mPath, Dr. Elliott Hedman. Dr. Hedman earned his Ph.D. at the MIT Media Lab where he studied how to measure the emotions of children. He works at the Denver Public Schools and Boys & Girls Clubs in Metro Denver.
You can find out more about them at www.buildempathy.com