What Are Some Good Survey Questions to Ask Parents in a Child Care Center?

By Staff Writer | Last Updated August 4, 2015

Potential items to include on a general survey for parents of children at a child care center include asking how the quality of care and services could be improved; asking what is being done well; and rating the curriculum, teachers, policies, hours of operation, safety and methods of handling complaints. The survey could also include a section to rate the food choices provided and to assess communication and management.

If the survey is anonymous, it is important to include questions that address the specific room the child is in or the child’s regular teacher. Asking questions that allow parents to give the information that the child care center is trying to obtain is also important. For example, if a child care center is conducting a survey to gauge interest in extended hours, the questions should center around that topic.

Good survey questions are direct and use simple language. Each question should address one idea at a time instead of asking about multiple ideas in one question. Questions should not contain bias. A question about teachers at the child care facility should not state, “How wonderful do you think the teachers are?” A better way to phrase the question is, “How well do our teachers meet your expectations?”