We worked with the INREM Foundation team starting from October 2019 to March 2021 to help first build a ‘Remote course for Integrated Fluorosis Mitigation’ and then to support the INREM team as they explored various formats and systems to build the team’s capacities to do virtual training for program staff and frontline workers from other organisations and the government to aid the outcomes of onground programs such as Jal Jeevan Mission.
INREM
About INREM
INREM Foundation (based in Anand) works on various issues with a focus on water quality and health. The institution develops innovative interdisciplinary solutions and brings them into the wider domain of practice by participating with communities and government. They work in a networked format across over 5 states on the ground in the area of integrated fluorosis mitigation, besides supporting other organisations and networks working on arsenic, coastal salinity, besides being involved in policy discussions at the state and central levels.
The Audience
The audience was primarily program staff from NGOs who were already active in the field and were working in communities confronted with the issues around quality and contaminants in their drinking water, and the staff needed to build foundational knowledge to help integrate the right approaches into their ongoing programs.
Process of Implementation
1
Remote IFM (Oct 2019 - Apr 2020)
To teach program staff and government officers the basics of Fluoride and Fluorosis along with introducing Integrated Fluorosis Mitigation that helps practitioners, government officials, NGO leaders get an understanding of action around fluorosis mitigation in an actionable way. The key being to develop this as a remote course, that has frequent interactions spread across a longer period of time.
2
Support & Capacity Building (May 2020 - Mar 2021)
Building on the success of the initial Remote IFM course, and some of the elements of the approach, the INREM team got involved in a number of capacity building exercises. The engagement focussed on shadowing the team, and giving feedback actively on various elements related to content, instructional design, and delivery.
Touchpoints
We built the following touchpoints for the Remote IFM course. The INREM team used these as starting points and evolved different systems based on the context of their virtual training efforts.
Learning Content and LMS
We worked with INREM to create a simple, accessible curriculum broken down into bite-sized lessons, each week’s lessons not more than 20 - 30 minutes. The lessons were produced with English text, and Hindi voiceovers on H5P. The dual lingual approach was done both to help learners, and aiding scalability of the content. These lessons were shared with learners through a simple setup on a webpage .
Weekly Virtual Workshops
Weekly webinars that happened on the same day, at the same time each week were attended enthusiastically by learners. At these sessions, experts such as domain experts working with GoI, other NGOs, and program staff at INREM shared their knowledge and experience. The learners got a chance to learn from these experts, as well as get their doubts answered by peers who would have faced similar contextual challenges in their work.
Field Activities
The course was designed such that it included field activities after major concepts were covered, so people could learn through application. Learners tested water samples from their selected habitations, did need assessment surveys and checked people for signs of Fluorosis. Doubts and questions from these experiences were then brought back to the weekly sessions to be addressed by the experts.
Current Status
Since the initial course and support, the INREM Foundation team with support from Arghyam, UNICEF and others have carried out a number of different training programs.
The main one is a monthly training workshop on Water Quality Management especially as it relates to the ongoing Jal Jeevan Mission (JJM). As of March 2022, they had trained over 600 individuals, further certifying a select number as trainers to ensure sustainability and scale of the training program.
