Meet the team

Michal Perlman is a Professor in the Department of Applied Psychology and Human Development at OISE, University of Toronto. She is the current director of the Dr. R.G.N. Laidlaw Research Centre at the Jackman Institute for Child Studies at OISE.

Michal studies issues related to quality in early childhood education and care (ECEC) including how it should be defined and measured as well as the links between different aspects of ECEC program quality and child outcomes. She has worked with different levels of government to explore how ECEC quality measurement can be used for monitoring and quality improvement purposes. She is also studying how education systems need to support children given the changing nature of work due to disruptive technologies

Michal brings her experience studying educational settings and outcomes to bear on assessing the efficacy of current policies intended to support future workers. In other areas of her research, she also studies parenting and family environments and their effects on childhood development.

Michal has published in a variety of peer-reviewed journals and practitioner/policy-oriented outlets. Her research has been funded by the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada, the Canadian Institutes of Health Research, the McCain Foundation among other government organizations and foundations.

Publications

Dr. Jennifer Jenkins is a developmental psychologist  in the Department of Applied Psychology and Human Development at the University of Toronto. She is the Academic Director of the Dr. Eric Jackman Institute of Child Study,  holds the Atkinson Charitable Foundation Chair in Early Child Development and Education and serves as the Director of the Atkinson Centre for Society and Child Development. She is an internationally renowned researcher in the generation and dissemination of scientific knowledge in children’s early leaning and mental health. Dr. Jenkins has taught courses in developmental psychopathology, research methods, and the management of mental health in schools.

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Olesya Falenchuk works as a research consultant at OISE for the last 15 years. Her current affiliation is with the Office of Associate Dean Research, International, and Innovations. Olesya holds her doctoral degree in Measurement and Evaluation from the Department of Curriculum, Teaching and Learning at OISE. In her job, Olesya assists OISE graduate students and faculty with all aspects of their research projects, including research design, data collection, and data analysis. She provides training on the software for quantitative and qualitative data analysis such as SPSS, R, NVivo, and Dedoose. She also offers guest lectures and seminars on the topics related to research methodologies to OISE departments and research groups.

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During his thirty years’ tenure with City of Toronto Children’s Services, Petr was responsible for service planning and then management of approximately $400 million child care budget. In that capacity, Petr has led the development a child care service planning framework and the first intersectoral Children’s Report Card. He also served on the Ontario Early Years Expert Panel and advised on several Child Care Human Resource Sector Council projects. After leaving the public sector, Petr returned to University of Toronto and received his PhD degree in 2020. His current research activities focus on investigation of neighbourhood effects on quality of child care programs, child care funding and issues of equitable access to high quality child care.

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Samantha is PhD candidate in the Developmental Psychology Education program at U of T. She has expertise in research methods, such as qualitative, quantitative, and mixed methods design, data collection and analytical techniques. She is interested in how early life experiences influence children’s developmental trajectories, with emphasis on early childhood education and care settings.
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Calpanaa Jegatheeswaran is a Ph.D. Candidate in the Developmental Psychology and Education program at the Ontario Institute for Studies in Education. She is completing her dissertation under the supervision of Dr. Michal Perlman. The focus of her research is on how environmental risk factors and parenting impact low-income children’s socio-emotional and cognitive development during their formative years. She has also recently worked in the equity, diversity, and inclusion space, exploring how these constructs shape the experiences of children and their families within social institutions, especially the home and the school.

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Ryan is a PhD student in the Developmental Psychology and Education program at the Ontario Institute for Studies in Education. His research has three primary focuses: 1) the relationship between child care quality and children’s developmental outcomes; 2) the factors that influence the quality of child care (e.g., neighbourhood characteristics); and 3) the development of peer relationships in early childhood. Also, he has worked on a project studying the feasibility and accuracy of AI-supported automation of integrating evidence in social science.

As well as having both qualitative and quantitative research experience, Ryan has worked on a variety of meta-analyses and longitudinal survey studies looking at Early Childhood Education and Care (ECEC). He has  extensive experience with data management and conducting a wide range of analyses (e.g., multilevel modeling, longitudinal analyses, and structural equation modeling). He is passionate about supporting young children’s development in child care settings by conducting rigorous research that can inform ECEC policies and practices.

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Jesseca a PhD student in the Developmental Psychology and Education program at the Ontario Institute for Studies in Education. Her research has focused on (1) the sibling relationship in diverse families, (2) the mental health of parents and children within diverse families, and (3) professional development programs for early childcare educators to support the development of children.

Before beginning her PhD, she gained valuable experience working in childcare settings, primary schools, and research institutes. These roles in educational settings provided her with the foundation to understand the practical aspects of child development and education. Building on this foundation, she transitioned to a research-focused path and developed extensive skills in both qualitative and quantitative research methodologies, data collection and management, and data analysis. All her work and research have centered around supporting the development of young children, enhancing family functioning, and promoting the mental health of families.

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Sumayya is a Ph.D. candidate in the Developmental Psychology and Education program at the University of Toronto. Her focus lies in understanding consensus formation regarding 21st-century skills and producing empirical evidence concerning how these skills can be cultivated at various life stages. She is interested in applied quantitative and mixed research methods, and she collaborates closely with interdisciplinary teams and community organizations on knowledge mobilization initiatives.

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Esther is currently completing her Developmental Psychology and Education (DPE) MA program and will be starting her PhD in the fall of 2024. With psychology, statistics, and AI background, her research interests mainly center around mixed-method research, child development, the quality of early childhood education and care, and the application of AI to support children across diverse developmental contexts. Recently, she’s been involved in projects focused on measurement development and program evaluation, which are areas she is eager to further develop expertise in.

Publications