Trees for the Future uses TaroWorks to record metrics on smallholder farmers in Africa such as land use change, trees planted, and economic resilience. They held trainings in 2014 and 2015 for field staff in East Africa and Cameroon on using TaroWorks and new surveys. The trainings included presentations on the data collected and its purpose, practical exercises like role playing, and lessons learned around technology skills and reserving time for discussion. Role playing was found to be an effective way for staff to practice using TaroWorks and understand survey intent.

1. Experiences Training
in TaroWorks
Andrew Zacharias, Monitoring & Evaluation
TaroWorks Customer Sharing Session
March 23, 2015

2. Introduction to TREES
• Trees for the Future is dedicated to planting trees with rural communities in
the developing world, enabling them to restore their environment, grow
more food, and build a sustainable future.
• We work with small holder farmers to
create intensively managed, agroforestry
systems that utilize vertical layers to produce
food and marketable products, called
Forest Gardens.

3. Introduction to TREES
• Active in seven (7) countries across Africa
 Senegal
 Mali
 Cameroon
 Uganda
 Tanzania
 Ethiopia
 Kenya
• 15 active project locations

4. How TaroWorks Helps Us
• To record and organize a variety of metrics on SF database
 Land use change
 Planting habits
 Number of trees planted
 Crop varieties
 Food access
 Food security
 Economic resilience
 Local Group information (name, location, general demographics)

5. 2014 Rollout: East Africa
• April 2014, Moshi, Tanzania
 Purchased and prepared 20 Android devices (Samsung Minis)
 Trained 17 Field Staff
 Hardware usage & maintenance
 TaroWorks usage & maintenance
 Data collection processes & techniques
 Reporting timelines

6. 2014 Training Format
• Theory (~3 hours)
 What data we are collecting and why
 PowerPoint Presentation
 Main benefits:
 Understanding the survey questions’ intents and purposes
• Practicals (~3 hours classroom, ~1.5 hours field)
 Classroom role playing activities
 Very structured scenarios to track correct responses
 Field based role playing activities
 Completed mock jobs during field visits
 Main benefits:
 Experience navigating a possibly new technology
 Experience accessing the correct surveys for the appropriate situations
 Experience working with real participant farmers to complete jobs

7. 2014 Training Format continued…
• Distance Training
 Attendants acting as trainers to other Field Staff not in attendance
 Ongoing assistance
 Technical support
 Assistance on following the established reporting guidelines
 Main benefit:
 Increased the training event’s impact by including more Field Staff
 Increased effectiveness of training by improving coordination of activities

8. 2014 Training: Lessons Learned
• Reserve enough time for device setup
 Be sure devices are compatible with the requirements listed on the TaroWorks
website
• There WILL be hiccups, but avoid fixing surveys while deploying
 Explain the issue and move on if possible
 Time is finite and it is often best to make necessary adjustments after/between
sessions
• There exists varying degrees of technological aptitude amongst participants
 Field Staff are generally excited to adopt new practices and technologies
 Keep language simple and clear
 Avoid unnecessarily lengthy and technical explanations, but be open with those
individuals who have inquiring minds
• Role Playing is an effective strategy for training. Use it wherever possible.

9. 2015 Rollout: Cameroon & East Africa
• New Surveys and M&E Plan
 New metrics
 USAID Household Dietary Diversity Score Survey, USAID Household Food Insecurity Access
Scale Survey, USAID Household Resilience Capacities Survey, and TREES Technical Data
Form
 New Timelines and Sample Selection Protocol
• Cameroon
 Five (5) Field Staff being trained
 First exposure to TaroWorks and new surveys
• East Africa
 12 Field Staff being trained
 Review of TaroWorks
 First exposure to new surveys

10. 2015 Training Format
• Theory (~2 hours)
 Similar to 2014’s Training Format
 Explained the “Logical Framework” behind the metrics chosen for the surveys
 Review of the TaroWorks jobs available to Field Staff
 What surveys they included
 When to complete the jobs
• Practicals (~4 hours)
 Utilized the Role Playing methodologies employed in 2014
 Both in-class room and field based activities
 Less structured question-answer format
 Focused more on the mechanics of accessing and navigating TaroWorks jobs and selecting
the correct job for the correct situation
 Led to great in-depth discussions of survey questions and intent

11. 2015 Training: Lessons Learned
• Device setup gets easier with more practice
• Role playing activities led to some great conversations about survey question
intent
 Be aware of language barriers and translation issues
 Should reserve more time in future training events for similar discussions and
additional practice time
• Great feedback on the Ethics portion of the presentation
 Develop additional training material to improve Staff-Participant discourse