Facilitate Online Learning With Our Teaching Distance Education Course!

Facilitate Online Learning With Our Teaching Distance Education Course!

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Distance education programs allow for flexible, self-paced learning to encourage engagement, information uptake and knowledge retention. This course covers both traditional and distance education perspectives, and is ideal for teachers, teacher aides, trainers, tutors and coaches.

The Certificate of Distance Education is a professional development program that will enhance your teaching skills in order to professionally and successfully deliver distance education programs.

In this teaching distance education course, you will learn about the adaption of teacher-learner models, the advantages and disadvantages of distance education, and the different styles of delivery. You will also develop skills in supporting distance education students, from offering counselling, assignment assistance, career advice and online chats, to video conferencing, exercise structuring and the facilitation of small group work.

Learning Outcomes

Outcomes achieved by undertaking a course in teaching distance education include:

  • Learning about trends in education and the growth in the distance education industry
  • Exploring the advantages and disadvantages of distance education
  • Studying the forms of distance education including paper-based education
  • Gaining insights into mentor guided projects or research
  • Understanding e-learning, blended learning, mentor-guided projects and video and audio courses
  • Learning about the exposition, behavioural, cognitive development, interaction and transaction models
  • Exploring how to profile students who are new to distance education
  • Studying the transition and getting past the first lesson
  • Gaining insights into completing assignments
  • Examining time management
  • Learning about writing style
  • Exploring how to support students
  • Studying the types of support services
  • Gaining insights into how to counsel new or prospective students
  • Examining the guidelines for completing assignments
  • Understanding how to help with research
  • Learning how to give student feedback
  • Exploring real-time support
  • Studying how to deal with practical work
  • Gaining insights into telephone conferencing, online chats and video conferencing
  • Understanding mentoring and listening skills including empathic listening
  • Learning about workshops and attended events
  • Exploring how to conduct structured exercises in small groups
  • Studying how to manage resources
  • Gaining insights into the cost of resourcing
  • Understanding resource options
  • Learning about the various approaches to assessment
  • Exploring the types of assessment for distance education
  • Studying how to submit and process assignments
  • Gaining insights into grading and marking exams
  • Examining exam procedures and processes

 

And more!

 

Top 6 Trends in E-Learning

Those involved in teaching distance education know that e-learning is an ever-evolving sector, particularly with the continual advancements in digital technologies. Here are the top current trends forecast by industry experts.

#1 – Learning Experience Platforms (LXPs)

LXPs are the next level of Learning Management Systems (LMSs), and have a higher focus on the user experience. Visually they look more like media-sharing websites than generic LMSs do — they’re a bit like social media platforms or even Netflix! Essentially, they are collaborative platforms that put the learning in the hands of the student rather than the facilitator or administrator. The goal is to engage those with the content and the platform via a personalised user experience.

 

#2 – Immersive Technologies

Like artificial intelligence (AI), immersive technologies have the potential to change the way e-learning content is created. These technologies include Virtual Reality (VR), Augmented Reality (AR) and Mixed Reality (MR), and are already impacting the e-learning sector. VR, for example, provides a physical, realistic experience that is anchored to the theoretical part of learning. It can also deliver instructional design strategies that increase engagement and minimise distractions.

 

#3 – Microlearning

Did you know a typical employee has only 24 minutes for training in a 40-hour week? So it’s not practical for them to consume in-depth content … and that’s where microlearning comes in. It involves offering students bite-sized content (of two to seven minutes) to generate quick consumption and better retention. This type of learning is designed to help students meet a specific learning goal and make every minute of their learning worthwhile!

 

#4 – Social Learning

The social learning theory was developed by psychologist Albert Bandura in the 1950s, and the simplified

definition revolves around humans learning better when they learn together. His theories suggested that when learning is facilitated between groups of two or more, information is retained more readily, and people learn faster and more effectively. This is because they exchange perspectives, share knowledge and observe each other’s actions and their consequences. They then make decisions based on these observations.

Social learning also involves engagement because learners aren’t passive recipients of information. For them to learn better, their environment, behaviour and cognition all to need to mutually influence each other. Millennials (those born between 1981 and 1996) were the first to embrace a complete social adoption, and the growing demand for social learning mimics this method of engagement.

 

#5 – Gamification

Gamification is game-oriented learning that allows providers to create intangible incentives that drive successful training results. It rewards those who accomplish desired tasks, and rewards include gift cards, physical rewards, points, virtual currency or achievement badges.

Gamification can leverage students’ natural desires for learning, engagement socialisation, achievement, competition, status and self-expression. It can also enhance retention, boost motivation and increase the appeal of learning materials. Providing leaderboards or making rewards visible to other players can also encourage other students to compete.

 

#6 – Content Curation

This is based on facilitators using external sources like TED talks, YouTube informational videos, and other publicly available content to enhance students’ learning experiences. This multi-faceted approach offers students content that’s rich in formats, sources and perspectives. Videos, in particular, are extremely powerful — YouTube now has over 2 billion active users worldwide — and can break up long passages of text and provide a wonderfully rich multimedia experience.

 

Distance Education Statistics

If you’re keen to up-skill or enter the wonderful world of teaching distance education, then your future is looking bright! Recent polls have cited the industry as having grown by over 4.5 per cent in the last five years. Wider internet access and technological advancements have seen the online education model as “an increasingly viable option for learning and career advancement”. As such, many education providers have recognised the growing need for flexibility and increased the breadth of courses available online.

The online education industry is expected to grow over the next five years with the expansion of high-speed internet services and the uptake of courses by non-traditional students. Trends towards “lifelong learning” and re-skilling are also forecast to support growth in flexible methods of study.

The COVID-19 pandemic has also affected the industry with the migration of many tertiary education courses boosting the share of the industry revenue generated from postgraduate and undergraduate courses.

 

Advantages of Distance Education 

People study via distance education for a variety of reasons. They may be a full-time student, in full-time employment or spend a lot of time travelling or working remotely. One thing is certain though — online study is becoming more and more popular as people look for more accessible and flexible ways to enhance their learning. Here are some of the benefits of distance learning programs that will help you inspire your students after you’ve completed our teaching distance education course.

  • Students can choose where, when and how often they study.
  • Flexibility allows students to carry on with their work, personal or family-related commitments.
  • Students improve their discipline, self-drive, accountability and motivation.
  • Facilitators have more flexibility in terms of where and when to respond to or access students.
  • Students’ attention span and level of interest is maximised.
  • Students can access global industry experts to enrich their knowledge through diverse perspectives.
  • The stress level of facilitators is reduced which can improve the quality of the training.
  • Students are more likely to have the undivided attention of facilitators in their interactions.
  • Distance education can be delivered with the same consistency to all students.
  • Students can further their careers by up-skilling in a working environment while studying.
  • Online accessibility reduces students’ travel, commuting, and education costs such as textbooks.
  • Students can pursue other career or educational opportunities while completing their coursework.
  • Students can access vast networking opportunities through online educational platforms.

 

Gain the confidence to deliver professional distance education programs and support your students in their quest for knowledge with a course in teaching distance education, such as our Certificate of Distance Education.

Grow Organic Food With Our Aquaponic Farming Course!

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The future of sustainable farming is all about producing enough food for the world’s growing population, while protecting the environment, minimising resource usage and ensuring systems are economically viable … and aquaponics does just that! Aquaponics is a food production system that combines aquaculture (raising aquatic animals in tanks) with hydroponics (cultivating plants in water). Some people operate large-scale commercial aquaponic farms, however you can also practice the principles of aquaponics in your own backyard!

The Certificate of Aquaponic Production is a professional development course that will teach you the fundamentals of aquaponic plant culture and how to set up an aquaculture system successfully.

In this aquaponic farming course, you will learn about the science of plant and animal growth, how different aquaponic systems work, and how to control the nutrition of your own system. You will also discover how to select and manage the right combination of plant and animal life, how to manage an aquaponics venture yourself, and how to troubleshoot any potential issues that arise.

 

Learning Outcomes

Outcomes achieved by undertaking an aquaponic farming course include:

  • Learning about the history of aquaponics and its advantages and disadvantages
  • Exploring world food and urban farming
  • Studying cost benefit analyses and the scale of operation
  • Examining different systems – open, deep water, floating raft, recirculating and non-recirculating
  • Understanding indoor and outdoor systems
  • Learning about wick, NFT, barrel ponic systems, gravel bed systems etc.
  • Exploring aqauponic sub systems, intermittent flow and deep water culture (DWC)
  • Studying commercial and backyard equipment, tanks, aeration devices and solids removal
  • Gaining insights into pH adjustment, heaters, chillers, alarms, biofilters and fish rearing facilities
  • Understanding hydroponic grow beds, water maintenance and organic vs. non-organic systems
  • Learning about plant growth factors and plant structure – roots, stems, leaves and reproductive parts
  • Exploring biochemistry, aquaponics and biochemical processes in a cell
  • Studying photosynthesis, plant nutrients, the mechanisms of nutrient uptake and the role of pH
  • Gaining insights into animal science, bony fish (osteichthyes) and crustaceans
  • Understanding water-soluble (ions) and less water soluble chemicals
  • Learning about nutrient formulae, atoms, elements, compounds and how chemical names are written
  • Exploring what a plant needs, calculating formulae and how to mix nutrients
  • Studying the symptoms of nutrient deficiency
  • Understanding variables in aquaponics – conductivity, pH control, oxygenation and beneficial bacteria
  • Learning about climate, water, food and fish food production
  • Exploring marketing, finance and the scale of operation
  • Studying the main species to grow from a range of countries and how to source them
  • Gaining insights into compost and earthworms
  • Understanding fish health, common pets and diseases and salinity and system health
  • Learning how to choose the right system and components, setting it up and the threats involved
  • Exploring greenhouse systems including management, active solar heating and controlling the environment
  • Studying humidity, vapour pressure, oxygen, carbon dioxide and light, air and root temperature control
  • Gaining insights into seeds – sources, types, sowing, propagating media and how to select them
  • Understanding herbs and vegetables in aquaponics
  • Learning about successional planning, flow charting a crop, pollination and how to control plant growth
  • Exploring pests, diseases, disorder control and how to identify crop problems
  • Studying how to market and undertake aquaponics for profit
  • Gaining insights into the harvesting and post-harvest management of fish, herbs and vegetables
  • Understanding harvested crop physiology – fruit ripening, respiration and when to harvest
  • Learning about storage temperature, chilling damage and CA and MA storage
  • Exploring the harvesting and grading of fruit and vegetables
  • Learning about how to manage an aquaponics venture
  • Exploring case studies – Speraneo, University of Virgin Islands and North Carolina State University systems
  • Studying research methodology and how to run an aquaponic trial
  • Examining water, pH, algae growth, gas, salinity, nutrient and plant problems
  • Understanding environmental physiological disorders and deficiency symptoms
  • Learning about pythium in aquaponics
  • Exploring fruit set management and flower and fruit development problems
  • Studying power losses, sediment clogging and fish-to-plant imbalances
  • Gaining insights into pathogenic contamination issues

And more!

 

Best Living Things for an Aquaponic System

Fish

  • Tilapia
  • Blue gill/bream
  • Sunfish
  • Crappie
  • Koi
  • Goldfish
  • Pacu
  • Various ornamental fish such as guppies, angelfish, tetras, mollies and swordfish

 

Plants

  • Any leafy lettuce
  • Bok choy
  • Kale
  • Swiss chard
  • Arugula
  • Basil
  • Mint
  • Watercress
  • Chives
  • Most common house plants

 

The Advantages of Aquaponics

Large-scale commercial aquaponic farms exist across Australia, but many people also have small-scale aquaponic gardens in their own backyards. If you’re thinking of undertaking an aquaponic farming course, here are some of the advantages.

Environmental Benefits

  • Reduced water usage – With droughts a common occurrence in Australia, water is a scarce resource. In conventional farming, water is often pumped out onto the land through irrigation pumps and lost through percolation, run-off or evaporation. In aquaponic systems, water loss is minimal because tank water is recirculated.
  • Reduced chemical use – In an aquaponic system, nutrients are made available to plants via fish waste so the need for chemicals is dramatically reduced. In fact, the use of chemicals is very harmful to fish and can disrupt the natural interactions between fish and their environment.
  • Reduced pesticides – A controlled environment reduces the need for pesticides because in an enclosed aquaponics system, the likelihood of pest infiltration is dramatically reduced.
  • Erosion reduction – Erosion is a major issue in Australia. Many hectares of precious topsoil are often lost through wind and water erosion every year, which often results in silt build-up in our waterways. Something that doesn’t happen with aquaponic farming!

 

Commercial Producer Benefits

  • Accessibility – Quality farm food production typically needs large amounts of water and land with high quality soil, and access can be challenging. With aquaponics, as long as you have a supply of water — even simple tank-stored rainwater — you’re sorted!
  • Reduced running costs – The costs associated with running a conventional horticulture farm can be immense. With aquaponic systems, there is no need for synthetic chemicals, and no spraying or ploughing required, so large tractors that require large amounts of fuel are out of the equation!

Backyard Producer Benefits

  • Reduced water consumption – Many locations in Australia now have restrictions in terms of the amount of water they are allowed to use. An aquaponics system uses less water compared to growing plants in soil.
  • Less physical labour – Backyard gardens often require physically exertion, particularly if your garden requires ongoing digging and weeding. Aquaponic systems are generally constructed above ground level, so maintenance is a breeze!
  • Educational advantages – Children can learn how fish and plants grow, and the ecological interactions between them and their environment. It will also give them a great ‘show and tell’ project for school!
  • Household cost savings – An aquaponic system can provide healthy, organic food for your family all year round. Get ready to reduce your shopping bill!

 

Aquaponics Throughout History

Thinking of doing an aquaponic farming course, but curious as to how the practice came about? Read on …

Aquaponics has ancient roots that are thought to have begun with the Aztec’s construction of ancient agricultural islands known as chinampas. Plants were raised on movable, stationary islands in the shallows of lakes, and waste materials dredged from the canals of the surrounding cities to irrigate the plants.

Examples of early aquaponics systems are also evident across Southeast Asia with the cultivation of rice in paddy fields. These were actually polycultural farming systems, where aquatic animals including fish and snails existed harmoniously alongside the plants.

A 13th century Chinese agricultural manual called Wang Zhen’s Book on Farming described wooden rafts piled with dirt and mud which were used for growing rice and fodder. The text also references floating raft rice cultivation as being used as early as the 6thcentury Tang Dynasty and 8th century Northern Song Dynasty periods of Chinese history.

The development of modern aquaponics is often attributed to Dr. Mark McMurtry and his team at the USA’s North Carolina State University. In the early 1970s, they devised an Integrated Aqua-Vegeculture System (iAV), which was based on the combination of aquaculture and sand-based grow beds.

In 1979, Dr. James Rakocy and his colleagues at the University of the Virgin Islands were then inspired to develop the use of deep water culture hydroponic grow beds in a large-scale aquaponics system.

Other institutions focused their research on “ebb and flow” systems, where coarse media like gravel or expanded clay replaced sand. Around the same time, ebb-and-flow irrigation cycles (called Speraneo Systems) were also being developed by the owners of aquaponics farms in Missouri, USA.

Canada saw a rise in aquaponics setups throughout the 1990s, predominantly as commercial installations raising high-value crops such as lettuce and trout. A setup based on the deepwater system was built in a greenhouse at Alberta in the US, where Dr. Nick Savidov and his colleagues researched aquaponics from a background of plant science. The team researched how to close the solid-waste loop and sustain rapid root growth in aquaponics systems. They found that compared to traditional aquaculture, systems could run well at lower pH levels.

In more recent years, floating aquaponics systems on polycultural fishponds — floating wetlands — have been installed in China on one of the largest scales ever seen. They are used to grow wheat, rice, canna lily and other crops with some installations exceeding ten thousand square metres. These experiments have today provided inspiration for the culture of aquaponics, and a foundation for the scaling-up of larger bodies of water for food production.

 

Set up, maintain and reap the benefits of an environmentally friendly aquaponic system with an aquaponic farming course such as our Certificate of Aquaponic Production.

 

Learn How to Create Amazing Vertical Gardens!

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Thanks to the vertical garden trend, even tiny apartments can be turned into a green-thumb’s dream come true! Planting upwards instead of outwards has many benefits. So, whether you want to learn to grow vertical gardens in your home or for commercial and public spaces, this course is ideal professional development for you!

The Certificate of Vertical Gardens will teach you how to create vertical gardens on walls and roofs to beautify unsightly spaces or create space for urban farming.

In this online course, you will discover types of installations for roof and vertical gardens, engineering considerations, which plants are suitable for walls and roofs, and maintenance requirements and landscaping aesthetics and functionality.

Have we piqued your interest? Discover how you can expand your career or invest in a wholesome hobby today!

Learning Outcomes

Outcomes achieved by undertaking a course on vertical gardens include:

  • Discuss the natureand scope of vertical gardens and roof gardens in horticulture today
  • Explain engineering considerations involved with the building of verticaland roof gardens, both on small- and large-scale projects
  • Select appropriate materialsand plan how the non-living components of the garden are created to achieve an appropriate and sustainable installation
  • Select appropriate climbing plants for creating vertical or roof gardens,and determine appropriate strategies to cultivate those plants, in a variety of different situations
  • Select appropriate plants for use in vertical or roof gardens, which are tolerant of the adverse growing conditions, having natural adaptations to growing under conditions that are encountered in these gardens
  • Selectand plan the cultivation of plants that lack natural adaptations to growing on roofs or vertical gardens; but which are none the less required to grow in these adverse conditions
  • Explain a range of container growing techniques, in a range of different roofand vertical gardens that may be used to select various plants.
  • Identifyand evaluate problems with vertical and roof gardens, and compare options for solving those problems
  • Plan the development of roof gardens for both small- and large-scale applications
  • Plan the development of vertical gardens for both small- and large-scale

 

And more …

 

Why Create Vertical Gardens?

There are many reasons to create vertical gardens from extending green areas in a small outdoor space to improving the look of an unsightly building, improving the environment and urban farming! 

Extend green space

If you want to create a more extensive garden but lack the space, a vertical garden is a perfect solution.

Improve building aesthetics

If you live or work in an unsightly building or have walls that look unattractive, then a vertical garden can improve the aesthetics.

Improve the physical environment

When you install a vertical garden (or any garden for that matter), you can improve the physical environment in various ways.

Greenspace, particularly those positioned on roofs and walls, can minimise glare, modify the temperature, filter the air and pollutants reduce water run-off and even mitigate flood problems!

Vertical urban farming

Growing crops in an urban area – or urban agriculture – is about producing food inside suburban regions and within the metropolitan fringe. Vertical farming is like indoor farming in vertical greenhouses, and it’s set to revolutionise the future of agriculture. It makes sense that when space is limited –go up! Growing upwards to create a sustainable food source is an excellent way to reap all the benefits of green space while producing a product to sell, consume or donate!

 

6 Amazing Benefits of Green Spaces!

Plants boost our physical and mental health in many ways – here are six amazing benefits of creating more green spaces in your home or workplace!

  1. Boosts air quality

Green spaces look gorgeous, but they also help boost air quality and may be able to remove air-borne chemicals!

  1. Promotes physical activity 

Gardens inspire movement and gardening is a wonderful fitness activity for all ages. So, if you’re looking to improve your physical fitness get planning!

  1. Decrease illness risks

Having plants in your workspace could prevent sick days! Those who work in high-rise buildings understand how fast illness can spread, so investing in greenery may help purify the air.

  1. Inspires a healthy diet

Gardening encourages people to include healthy foods in their diets and break free of poor eating habits. Homegrown food tastes better and is more appealing because of the time and effort that has been invested in growing and harvesting.

  1. Boosts mood and productivity

We generally feel happier and more productive in green surroundings with plenty of plants and nature. Flowers particularly can evoke positive emotions.

  1. Helps relieve stress

Gardening brings people closer to nature and encourages living in the present moment while engaging the senses. When you take time to ‘smell the roses’, cortisol levels drop, which can help alleviate symptoms of stress, anxiety and depression.

 

Learn how to create thriving vertical gardens for your home or commercial projects. Study our Certificate of Vertical Gardens today!

Looking for a Future Career? Study Introduction to Robotics!

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An introduction to robotics is a forward-thinking study path. After all, robotics will be critical to most careers in the future, making understanding this subject critical to employability and productivity!

Our Certificate of Introductory Robotics is a professional development program that will develop your understanding of robots.

In this introduction to robotics courses, you’ll learn how robots work, types of robots, sensors, and processers, and about kinematics and cybernetics.

You’ll also learn about maintenance, from preventative measures to breakdown planning, and about the many applications of industrial and service robots.

So, if you’re looking for future-proof your career, look no further than an introduction to robotics! Upon completing this course, you’ll understand robotics, future applications of robots and the many possible uses for robots of the future.

 

Learning Outcomes

Outcomes achieved by undertaking an introduction to robotics include:

  • A brief history of robotics
  • Types of physical robots
  • Cartesian robots, cylindrical robots, SCARA (selective compliance articulated robot arm), delta robots and articulated robots
  • Basic components of a physical robot
  • Key principles in robotics
  • Classifying robots and key terms
  • Classification of robots based on the workspace geometry, mode of operation, application (factory/manufacturing and domestic), movement (fixed and mobile)
  • Hydraulic actuator
  • Pneumatic actuator
  • Electrical actuator
  • Synchronous actuator
  • Benefits and drawbacks
  • Mechanical components of robots
  • Robot links and joints
  • Types of sensors – light, sound, temperature, tactile, acceleration, navigation, positioning and distance
  • Signal processing
  • Accuracy and precision
  • Safety of workers working around robotic equipment
  • Moving to an internet-based digital infrastructure
  • Power supply
  • Mains, generator systems and hybrid systems
  • Battery specifications and types of batteries used in robots
  • Photovoltaic cells and fuel cells
  • Control systems
  • Open-loop control system
  • Forward kinematics
  • Reverse/ inverse kinematics
  • Configuration and workspace
  • Structure of robots
  • Based on joints, topology, and position
  • Kinematic pairs
  • Based on the type of contact between the elements
  • Floating bases and virtual linkages
  • Fundamental electrical components
  • Resistors capacitors inductors transformers
  • Application of robots

And more …

Who Coined the Term Robotics?

In our introduction to robotics course, you’ll learn about the history of robotics.  Interestingly, the term robotics was coined by a Russian-born American science fiction writer named Isaac Asimov.

Asimov was a prolific writer, penning more than 500 books, and was also a biochemistry professor at Boston University.

The word robotics was first used in his short story ‘Liar!’ which was published in 1941. His depiction of robots was optimistic, characterising them as helpful servants that made life easier for society.

Asimov also came up with the ‘Three Laws of Robotics’:

A robot:

  1. May not injure a human being or, through interaction, allow a human being to come to harm.
  2. Must obey the orders given by human beings except where such order conflict with the First Law.
  3. Must protect its own existence as long as such protection does not conflict with the Frist or Second Law.

What Was the First Robot?

Joseph Frederick Engelberger was an American physicist, engineer, and entrepreneur. He licenced the original patent awarded to inventor George Devol, and developed the first industrial robot called the Unimate in the 1950s.

Engelberger was an entrepreneur and vocal advocate of robotic technology in various fields, from service industries to health care, and space exploration. He is often referred to as “the father of robotics” for his contributions to the field.

The Unimate was an industrial robot which worked on a General Motors assembly line in 1961. The machine was responsible for transporting die castings from an assembly line and welding these parts onto auto-bodies. This task was dangerous for people, as there was a risk of poisoning by toxic fumes or even limb loss!

In 2003, the Ultimate was inducted into the Robot Hall of Fame!

 

5 Ways Robotics Will Change Our Future

There’s no doubt that robots have and will continue to improve human beings’ lives, from health care to transportation, education, and beyond – the future is exciting!

  1. Law enforcement and public safety

Advances in artificial intelligence and surveillance systems mean that detecting and responding to crime will get faster. In fact, automatic recognition of suspicious activity is a reality for many camera-based security systems!

  1. Education

Computer-based learning is changing the education space for the better, but not by replacing teachers! Instead, robots boost the ability to deliver personalised learning programs!

Pepper and NAO, humanoid robots, are already establishing bonds with students from all over the world. They are the perfect assistants for educators by facilitating content creation and customised teaching activities.  These robots help students develop problem-solving and analytical skills and have natural interaction, such as moving, listening, speaking, and connecting!

  1. Autonomous cars

Perhaps one of the most exciting developments in robotics is the self-driving car. At the moment self-driving cars still require some human intervention, but we’re getting closer to the day they’ll drive themselves!

As companies continue to invest in this exciting technology, we’ll live to see a    revolution in driving and public transport in the next decade!

  1. Health care

The medical field, health care workers and patients benefit from robotic technologies via facilitating medical procedures by guiding instruments, diagnostic equipment and therapy. They improve safety and overall quality of medical treatment while lowering health care cost.

  1. In the home

We can already have our house vacuumed while we’re at work by a robot and have a home-cooked meal ready when we arrive home! Home-based robotic technology will only get more advanced, with robots taking over more of the monotonous chores we loathe! Can’t wait!

Careers in Robotics

There are many careers that will be impacted by robots – for better or worse – but these careers will be behind this new robotic revolution!

Robotics engineer

Engineers develop robots on paper, and their creation can take time due to research, high-technicality and sophistication of the machine. So, if patience isn’t a virtue, this may not be the career for you!

Software Developer

A software developer writes the systematic code to ensure robots perform tasks safely and precisely. Computer coding and software design are the skills are critical.

Technicians

A robotic technician repairs and maintains robots and also builds parts for robots. An electromechanical technician is part of the design process and works closely with an engineer.

 

Automation in the form of robotics will impact all kinds of work, which means we’re looking at a more comfortable future – aren’t you eager to be part of it? Study an introduction to robotics in the Certificate of Introductory Robotics!

 

Learn How to Write Right With Our Business Writing Course!

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Communication skills are an essential life skill, and improving them can build more effective relationships with friends and family. They can also enhance your career prospects, as employers seek those who communicate well on many platforms and to a variety of audiences, including with colleagues, customers and suppliers. This course is ideal for writers, editors, communication coordinators, admin staff, managers, client-facing sales staff, and those who speak English as a second language.

The Certificate of Business Writing and Communication is a professional development course that will enhance your written, visual and aural communication skills — from increasing profits and improving customer service to boosting productivity and reducing workplace accidents.

In this business writing course, you will study appropriate communication, the types of language, emphatic listening, and the different channels you can use to deliver powerful messages in business. You will also learn how to develop your visual communication skills in public speaking, write for different audiences in a variety of formats, and how to incorporate digital applications and technology into presentations.

 

Learning Outcomes

Outcomes achieved by undertaking a business writing course include:

  • Learning about the problems with poor communication
  • Exploring the barriers to effective communication
  • Studying how to give instructions
  • Examining how to evaluate instructions or orders
  • Understanding the different types of communication
  • Learning about appropriate communication
  • Exploring passive, aggressive and assertive communication
  • Studying empathic listening and the obstacles to listening
  • Gaining insights into ways to indicate you are listening
  • Understanding the informative, persuasive, imaginative and literal language
  • Learning about figurative, formal and colloquial language
  • Exploring communication channels
  • Studying how to review and evaluate your writing
  • Gaining insights into using concise wording and condensing your writing
  • Understanding clear wording and how to make meanings clear
  • Learning about the causes of confusion – homophones, malapropisms, colloquial meanings and ambiguity
  • Exploring simplicity in writing and communication
  • Studying where writing skills are used
  • Gaining insights into determining and writing for a purpose and knowing your reader
  • Understanding language and the guidelines for effective writing
  • Learning how to write a business letter and other business documents
  • Exploring writing themes including analogy and chronological theme
  • Studying punctuation, concise wording and how to avoid the common grammatical errors
  • Gaining insights into writing for newspapers and magazines
  • Understanding visual communication including handouts and digital technology
  • Learning about charts and illustrations
  • Exploring digital applications like graphics, CAD, multimedia and the internet
  • Studying public speaking
  • Gaining insights into audio aids and recorded presentations
  • Examining the principles of public speaking
  • Learning about the functions and how to conduct a committee meeting
  • Exploring the role of office bearers
  • Studying how to take minutes in a meeting

And more!

Causes of Communication Confusion

According to scientists, humans began writing around 4000 B.C and speaking around 100,000 years ago. Prior to written language humans used cave drawings, which then evolved to word symbols. With the evolution of language and with the number of words available, the opportunity for miscommunication became (and still is) high. This is because specific words and the meanings of those words can vary significantly due to different cultures, environments and experiences. After you’ve done our business writing course, you will understand the importance of using the following correctly:

Acronyms

These are abbreviated versions of phrases or organisation names that are formed by combining alphabetical characters to create a new word. They can save time and may improve the recall of a phrase’s underlying meaning, and the use of acronyms also continues to grow as people communicate through different platforms like social media and messaging apps. However, they are so ubiquitous in print and speech that their meanings are often misinterpreted!

 

Common acronyms used in business include:

  • DIY (do it yourself)
  • DOB (date of birth)
  • ASAP (as soon as possible)
  • GST (goods and services tax)
  • KPI (key performance indicator)
  • BAU (business as usual)
  • COB (close of business)
  • F2F (face to face)
  • ETA (expected time of arrival)
  • ATO (Australian Taxation Office)
  • OHS (occupational health and safety)
  • MYEFO (mid-year economic and fiscal outlook)

 

Common acronyms used in social media include:

  • AMA (ask me anything)
  • BTW (by the way)
  • FOMO (fear of missing out)
  • HBD (Happy Birthday)
  • TGIF (Thank god it’s Friday)
  • YOLO (You only live once)
  • ICYMI (In case you missed it)
  • TBH (To be honest)
  • TMI (Too much information)
  • LMK (Let me know)
  • NM (Not much)

 

Colloquialisms

These are words or phrases that develop a new meaning outside of the traditional definition. They can be specific to geographic regions or fashionable at a particular time or in a particular context. They also include “buzzwords” (which are words that sound impressive but convey no special meaning), and although they colour writing and speech, the possibility of misunderstanding can be high. Examples of buzzwords used in business include:

  • Passionate
  • Motivated
  • Extensive experience
  • Creative
  • Driven
  • Strategic
  • Track record
  • Enthusiastic
  • Responsible
  • Innovative

 

Examples of colloquialisms used in business include:

It’s a no-brainer – A decision or choice that is so easy or obvious, it requires little or no thought.

Think outside the box – A metaphor that means to think unconventionally, differently or from a new perspective.

At the end of the day – When everything is taken into consideration.

It’s a win-win situation – An outcome or situation where everyone comes away happy.

Touch base – To briefly renew or make contact with someone.

Moving forward – A progression in time from the present.

Giving it 100 per cent – Giving it all that you’ve got, plus more.

Close of play – The end of a work or trading day.

It’s on my radar – In a person’s awareness.

 

Homophones

These are words that are spelt differently but sound the same. Because English is the most widely spoken language across the globe, it’s not surprising that certain words are pronounced or spelt similarly. But as you will learn in our business writing course, accuracy and error-free communication and documentation is vital in professional dealings. Some of the common homophones that confuse many of us are:

  • Complement vs. compliment – To complement is something that enhances or completes, and a compliment is an expression or remark of admiration.
  • Ensure vs. insure – Ensure means to make safe or sure and insure to obtain insurance.
  • Affect vs. effect – Affect means to act or have an effect upon, and effect is a change caused by the consequences of an action.
  • Confirmation vs. conformation – Confirmation is the act of being confirmed, and conformation is compliance with a rule or law.
  • Incite vs. insight – Incite is to urge or spur on, insight is a deep understanding of people or situations.
  • Accede vs. exceed – Accede is to agree or approve, and exceed to extend beyond or be greater than.
  • Imminent vs. eminent – Imminent is something that’s about to happen soon, and eminent is a respected person in a particular sphere.
  • Defer vs. differ – Defer is to postpone or delay and differ to disagree or be dissimilar.
  • Principle vs. principal – Principle is a fundamental doctrine, principal is the most important thing or person.
  • Queue vs. cue – A queue is a sequence of things or people, and a cue is a signal.

Malapropisms

This is the misuse of word or words, and it can often have confusing or unintentionally hilarious results. The term comes from an 18th-century play called The Rivals written by Richard B. Sheridan — the main character says things that sound almost correct, but are just a little bit wrong! Common malapropisms used in everyday language include:

“I could care less” – this phrase is often used to utter disinterest in a discussion topic, however, it literally means the opposite of what is probably intended! The correct phrase is “I could not care less” or “I couldn’t care less”.

“For all intensive purposes” – when this is used, the speaker probably means “in every practical sense”, however they are actually saying “for the purposes of making things more intensive”! The correct phrase is “For all intents and purposes”.

Irregardless – this is a combination of two words with the same meaning – “regardless” and “irrespective”. Both mean “setting that aside for the moment” or “despite prevailing circumstances”. This is one of the most common and oldest malapropisms in modern English and humans have been using it since at least the early twentieth century!

 

Other malapropisms occur because of the misuse of phonetically similar words, and include:

  • Ambiguous/ambivalent – the first means unclear and the second unsure.
  • Affect/effect – the first is a verb meaning to change, the second a noun referring to the result of a change.
  • Allusion/illusion – the first is an indirect reference, the second an apparition, mirage or hallucination.
  • Precede/proceed – the first means to go before something, the second, to move forward.
  • Jibe/jive – the first means to agree or complement and the second is a type of dance or to perform that type of dance. They are a little different!

 

Gain the confidence to write, communicate and present professionally in a business setting with a business writing course, such as our Certificate of Business Writing and Communication.

Watch Your Career Flourish With Our Water Garden Design Course!

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Anyone can create backyard ponds or water features but designing those that are ecologically sustainable and encourage healthy ecosystems is another skill entirely …. that is in demand! Ideal for landscapers, garden designers, water feature specialists and backyard enthusiasts, this course will improve your gardening know-how, enhance your job prospects, and even lead to a new career direction!

The Certificate of Water Gardens is a professional development course that will give you the skills and knowledge you need to create stunning water gardens and features.

In this water garden design course, you will learn about the nature and scope of water gardens, including equipment, construction materials and techniques, and how to construct and maintain spas and pools. You’ll also study garden design and the water plants and aquatic animals that are typically used in water gardens.

Learning Outcomes

Outcomes achieved by undertaking a water garden design course include:

  • Learning how to determine the size of a water garden
  • Exploring water quality and water supply in terms of rain and tanks etc.
  • Studying how to site a water garden
  • Gaining insights into safety, water depth and evaporation rate
  • Understanding informal and formal garden design
  • Learning about shade, edging and water sculptures
  • Exploring water effects including sound, movement, reflect, light and cooling
  • Studying water life including fish, algae, wildlife, plants and mosquitoes
  • Gaining insights into water garden construction
  • Understanding how to plan a water garden and the types of construction
  • Learning about the effects and matching the effect with the type of garden
  • Exploring surrounds and its size, surrounds, shape and location
  • Studying how to use a liner and pond edges
  • Gaining insights into pre-formed water gardens
  • Understanding water garden equipment
  • Learning about submersible pumps
  • Exploring light design with water including power sources and DC power
  • Studying pond filtration systems – sterile or living water
  • Gaining insights into swimming pool, mechanical and biological filtration
  • Understanding how to design a natural watercourse
  • Learning about siting a stream, water circulation, dams and pond design and management
  • Exploring reed beds, bog gardens and oxygenating plants
  • Studying the design and aftercare of spas and swimming pools
  • Gaining insights into choosing a swimming pool and cost and structural considerations
  • Understanding above and below ground and vinyl, fibreglass and concrete pools
  • Learning about pump and filtration systems
  • Exploring shapes and special features in pools
  • Studying how to heat a pool and care for a pool over winter
  • Gaining insights into indoor and outdoor water features
  • Understanding pot ponds, water barrels, wall plaques, wall fountains and water walls
  • Learning about fountains, waterfalls, water spouts, canals and cascades
  • Exploring birdbaths and cobble fountain construction
  • Studying cobble fountain construction
  • Gaining insights into how to use water features in a landscape
  • Understanding water plants including waterside trees and shrubs
  • Learning about bog, emergent water, floating leaf and aquatic plants
  • Exploring water lilies
  • Studying the plants to avoid in water gardens
  • Gaining insights into surround plants
  • Understanding aquatic animals
  • Learning about the conditions needed by fish and aquatic animals
  • Exploring maintenance and troubleshooting
  • Studying fish, frogs, tortoises, water snails, insects and birds
  • Gaining insights into troubleshooting issues with water gardens

History of Water Gardens

Water gardens not only add creative inspiration to a landscape, but they also add functionality — from providing water for wildlife to adding a calming ambience to the surroundings. Here is some historical inspiration that might convince you to undertake our water garden design course.

Water features have been present in every historical era and any culture that had gardens in their landscapes and architectural environments. They were used for both ornamental aesthetics and to enable plant and fish production.

Planned water gardens first originated in ancient Egypt when the Egyptians channelled water from the Nile River into their palace gardens. Gardens were designed with the pond as the focal point, and fish were included as well as blooming aquatic plants like lilies and papyrus. Lotus plants were grown, as they were considered sacred and a source of medicine for ailments. In fact, lotus petals were found at the excavation of the Ramses II tomb, suggesting they were being used over three thousand years ago! Ornamental trees and plants were also scattered around this oasis, and spaces created where they could lounge and enjoy the outdoors. The Persians were next to construct water gardens, and considered sunlight and its effects an important factor of the structural design — shapes and textures were specifically chosen to harness the light. This was followed by the Greeks (their gardens included statues of their gods), and the Chinese and Japanese (their gardens were designed to encourage reflection and contemplation).

After the fall of the Roman Empire, utilitarian gardening was nurtured by monasteries until the beginning of the Renaissance in the late fourteenth century. They controlled the management of water, using wells and local streams and rivers for both domestic uses and for fishponds. In many monasteries, simple cisterns were found in gardens and wall fountains were placed within the cloister.

In the Middle Ages, public displays of religious water features (like water stoops and baptismal fonts) were only found in major church buildings. Decorations were inspired by Bible stories associated with water, such as the stories of Moses and the baptism of Christ. Garden fountains were often used for bathing and represented an earthly paradise and a source of spiritual rejuvenation. A beautiful example that still exists today is the Fontana Maggiore in Perugia, Italy. Fountains and water features in private residences also became a celebration of a family’s wealth and prosperity. In urban areas, they combined both civic and religious themes, which summarised the town’s revival and were a crowning achievement for all to enjoy.

The industrial age saw the introduction of the modern water pump that allowed for water recirculation. Up until then, water was diverted from springs and rivers as it exited natural watercourses or agricultural fields. Many of the concepts and water features used across history — like irrigation, arbours, edible ornamentals and fish keeping are still being used today.

 

Main Types of Water Features

Water adds a touch of magic to gardens – a sound and presence that has the power to soothe and calm. Whether you install a naturalistic pond in a wildlife corner or a formal rectangular pool for aquatic animals, water features can be easily adapted to suit the style and space of a garden and its surroundings. And as you’ll discover in our water garden design course, most water features follow an informal or formal style.


Formal

Formal ponds and pools are named because they are mainly designed with defined angles and shapes with distinct edges. They create a vista and exist to be seen and admired, whether it’s centrally positioned with an ornate fountain or towards the rear of a courtyard with a wall fountain above it. Formal water features can be framed with decorative stones or traditional construction materials like bricks or concrete. These structures are also often further enhanced by garden plants after the final geometrical shape and structure have been defined.

Formal ponds can be sunken or raised. Typically, a raised pond will be of a uniform depth throughout such as a rectangular raised pond sitting on a stone patio. The sides and capping of the pond will usually be constructed of the same material as the adjacent buildings or walls, which will tie all the garden elements together and create a sense of rhythm and unity in the design.

Informal

Informal water features typically don’t have clearly defined edges. Their irregular or curved shape allows for a more natural look as if the pond or pool is an extension of the garden. Another feature is the possible absence of edging materials to frame it or the addition of lawn or ornamental grasses that give the illusion that it has been formed by nature.

These types of “natural” water features can also take the form of a pond or a meandering creek or stream that runs through the garden, and blend into their surrounds rather than standing out.  They may be edged by materials that replicate the landscape of the local region including bark, rocks, shingle, river pebbles, driftwood and even bare earth.

Informal water features also aren’t just part of a natural garden theme — they can be included as part of a rustic design or in a cottage garden. In cottage gardens, it could be an irregularly shaped pond with brick edging or a birdbath located in a shady spot. In a rustic garden, it could be a body of water housed in an old whiskey barrel, an enamel sink or an antique claw-footed bath. The options of using water creatively in garden projects are only as limited as your imagination!

 

Gain a comprehensive understanding of how to create stunning water features and gardens for yourself or your clients with a water garden design course, such as our Certificate of Water Gardens.

Online Counselling Course Promotes Professional Practice

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Developing an awareness of your own beliefs, issues, biases and adhering to ethical and moral standards ensures best care practices for clients and patients. Continually improving yourself and recognising when to refer a patient is also crucial to ensuring professional practice.

The Certificate of Professional Practice is a professional development course that is ideal for counsellors, psychologists, health care workers, social workers and anyone in the mental health sector.

In this online counselling course, you will learn about the client/counsellor relationship, ethics and confidentiality and counselling versus mental health issues. You will also study self-awareness, emotions, behaviour, personality and quality of effectiveness of supervision.

This course also lays the foundations for professional counselling practice and provides a framework for those wanting to add counselling skills to their professional development portfolio.

 

Learning Outcomes

Outcomes achieved by undertaking an online counselling course in professional practice includes:

  • Discuss personal qualities that counselling will draw upon and demonstrate an awareness of the types of issues new counsellors need to resolve within themselves.
  • Raise awareness of the ethical issues that arise within the profession, legal requirements, informed consent, decision-making and other related topics.
  • Gain insight into how the self, and one’s perception of self-influences both the client and the counsellor
  • Understand the effect of the self upon relationships both within and outside the counselling process.
  • Enhance awareness of what is considered a healthy personality, to consider different types of personality tests, and to become aware of the application of different approaches to personality within the counselling process.
  • Explain how emotions arise, what they are, how they influence our bodies, minds and behaviour, and their role in the counselling process.
  • Understand the necessity for counsellors to have ongoing supervision throughout their professional career and be continually striving to upgrade their skills.
  • Delineate circumstances in which it is preferable to refer a client on to another health care professional, and to understand some of the central disorders that they may encounter.
  • Describe how dependency can evolve in the counselling process.
  • Discuss the importance of upgrading skills and ongoing supervision.
  • Outline methods of observation used in supervision.
  • Discuss the counsellor’s responsibility to the client.
  • Define symptoms of commonly encountered disorders.
  • Discuss how the counsellor’s sense of self-awareness can affect the counselling process.
  • Describe how self-perception can influence identity, roles and self-actualisation.
  • Define schemas, scripts, and attributions and their influence on social perception.

And more!

What is Professional Practice?

The term ‘professional practice’ refers to the conduct and work of someone from a particular profession. In this course, you will study professional practice as it relates to counselling. Awareness of professional practice is arguably the most critical factor for client/patient satisfaction and favourable outcomes. 

What is Professional Counselling?

Professional counselling is a safe and confidential collaboration between mental health professionals and clients to improve mental health, navigate difficult life transitions, improve self-awareness and resolve concerns.

Counselling is a profession that is evidence-based and aims to empower clients and facilitate positive change. The profession is based on a non-medical model of care and instead uses a biopsychosocial approach.  The focus is on the treatment and prevention of mental illness and promoting mental health and wellbeing.

Counselling skills are used in many professions – but counselling professionals are qualified and registered to support clients in therapy with their mental health and wellbeing.

What are Counselling Skills

You don’t have to be a professional psychologist or social worker to develop counselling skills. In fact, developing counselling skills is beneficial for a range of professions and careers. They not only help build trust and rapport but promote active and emphatic listening so that clients or patients feel supported and understood.

At the heart of counselling are exceptional listening skills – not advice-giving. So, clients or patients are encouraged to find solutions to their own personal problems and difficulties.

The ability to help someone in distress requires counselling ‘skills’, including listening, reflecting and paraphrasing, clarification, focusing, rapport building and summarising.

Listening

Listening (or attending) involves more than just hearing. It includes appropriate eye-contact, body language and gestures, facial expressions, tone of voice and even silence.

Reflecting & Paraphrasing

The ability to repeat and convey a shorter version of a client’s story back to them accurately demonstrates understanding and that you have listened.

Clarification

Clarification and considered use of questions are crucial to necessary counselling skills. It’s important to use open-ended questions to gain more information and to build trust.

Focusing

Focusing techniques help establish core issues of concern and ensure discussions revolve around your clients’ most pertinent challenges. 

Rapport Building

Developing trust and creating a genuine connection with your client is at the heart of rapport-building. Rapport is built when a client feels safe and comfortable in the counselling session. 

Summarising

Finally, to condense information in response to a client’s concerns and validate their feelings, you should summarise. Summarising is basically extended paraphrasing.

What Are the Qualities of Good Counselling’?

In gaining counselling skills, you become a better support person – or helper!

  • Keeping confidentiality
  • Having empathy
  • Positive regard
  • Being respectful
  • Exuding warmth
  • Being genuine
  • Non-judgemental

 

Gain a thorough understanding of professional practice as it relates to the counselling profession in this online counselling course. Enrol today in the Certificate of Professional Practice.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Enjoy a Fruitful Career with a Berry Production Course!

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Gain insight into the wonderful world of berry production – from strawberries to blueberries, cranberries, raspberries, gooseberries, goji berries and more! This course is ideal for horticulture students, commercial growers, berry farm staff, and hobby gardeners who want to start their own berry patch.

The Certificate of Berry Production is a professional development course that will teach you the botanical characteristics of berries, varieties to grow, and how to plant, stake, mulch, water, feed and protect and prune them as a commercial enterprise.

In this fruit production course, you will learn which berries best varieties to grow in your region; study how to determine propagation, irrigation and weed control; and explore harvest and market and navigate the management of a commercial berry growing business.

This fruit production course lays the foundations for growing many types of berries, emphasising commercial berry crops – so what are you waiting for? Take a look at the learning outcomes and start your fruitful career today! 

Learning Outcomes

Outcomes achieved by undertaking a fruit production course include:

  • Distinguish between common and botanical definitions for the term berry
  • Compare the botanical characteristics of berry fruits
  • Develop criteria for the selection of suitable berry fruit varieties.
  • Evaluate the performance of four different berry varieties.
  • Determine appropriate varieties of different berries to grow in a specified locality
  • Describe an appropriate planting method for each of three specified genera of berry fruits.
  • Illustrate appropriate pruning methods
  • Determine appropriate irrigation practices
  • Develop feeding programs
  • Conduct simple soil tests to determine soil characteristics relevant to a proposed berry planting.
  • Recommend appropriate soil preparation for the tested soil, before planting a specified berry crop.
  • Compare weed control practices appropriate for specified berry crops.
  • Develop soil maintenance programs
  • Identify different health disorders (e.g. pests and diseases) on berry plants.
  • Develop a pest and disease control program
  • Describe different methods for propagating specified berry plants, including:
  • Demonstrate cutting propagation
  • Produce marketable berry plants
  • Compare the commercial viability of propagating berries
  • Determine when different types of berries are ready for harvest
  • Describe different methods for harvesting
  • Explain the harvesting of five types of berries before they are ripe, and ripening of the berries off the plant
  • Determine appropriate post-harvest treatments for a specified commercial berry crop
  • Develop a resource file of different items of information relevant to the berry fruit industry
  • Determine criteria which are significant in the commercial success of a specific berry farm
  • Explain how a range of five different berries is prepared for the market.
  • Prepare a chart of ten different berry species that lists their shelf life.
  • Evaluate the commercial viability of three different methods of packaging and presenting berries for sale.
  • Compare common marketing strategies for berry fruits
  • Develop a marketing plan

And more!

16 Berry Fun Facts!

Berries are deliciously fun to learn about, but you’ll discover more when you undertake our fruit production course!

  1. The little hairs on raspberries and blackberries are called ‘styles’. Styles are left over from the berry blossom and protect the berry.
  2. A true ‘berry’ is a fruit that grows from one flower with one ovary, making blueberries, tomatoes, bananas and avocados true berries! Strawberries, raspberries and blackberries are grown from a flower with more than one ovary so are considered ‘aggregate fruits.’
  3. There are about 200 tiny seeds on each strawberry.
  4. The dusty-sliver colour on blueberries is a natural barrier that seals in moisture, which is called ‘bloom’.
  5. Did you know a strawberry can clone itself? To reproduce, strawberries can shoot off-runners and clone themselves multiple times.
  6. The little bumps (also known as drupletes) on a blackberry or raspberry are determined by a bee. The number of drupletes on a berry is connected to the number of times a bee has landed the berry flower to pollinate it!
  7. There are over 200 different varieties of raspberries!
  8. Raspberries and blackberries are aggregate fruits, which means you’re eating many tiny individual fruits growing together.
  9. Batology is the scientific study of blackberries.
  10. The strawberry is a close relative to the rose! They both belong to the Fragraria family, which means fragrant.
  11. Strawberries might help your head — they contain salicylates, which is an ingredient in aspirin.
  12. Raspberries aren’t always red – they actually come in yellow, purple, black and even gold!
  13. Blueberries were called ‘star-fruits’ by North American indigenous peoples because of the star shape at the berry’s blossom end.
  14. Americans have a National Blueberry Pie Day – on April 28 each year. Yum!
  15. Berries may boost brain power – they are linked to brain health, reduce inflammation, protect cells from free radicals and more.
  16. The goji berry has the highest Vitamin C in the world!

 

Bountiful Health Benefits of Berries!

Berries of all varieties pack a powerful nutritional punch. They are rich in fibre, which is vital in the gut and digestive health, and antioxidant-rich!

Berries may play an essential role in:

Brain health – eating more fruits and vegetables, particularly berries, seems to protect the brain. Compounds found in berries not only protect the brain from oxidative stress but also counteract advanced glycation end-products called AGEs, which have been linked to Alzheimer’s disease.

Immune boosting – Blueberries contain flavonoids, a type of antioxidant that helps reduce damage to cells and boost the immune system. In some lab studies, elderberry extract appears to block flu viruses!

Blood pressure – Eating just one cup of blueberries or strawberries a week may lower your blood pressure. Anthocyanins — found mainly in fruits and vegetables such as blueberries, raspberries, strawberries, cranberries, seem to protect against high blood pressure, according to a team of British and American nutritionists. The researchers found that people who ate at least one serving of blueberries a week were 10 per cent less likely to develop high blood pressure than study participants who ate no blueberries.

 

Gain a comprehensive understanding of berry production for commercial purposes with a fruit production course, such as our Certificate of Berry Production.

Our Flower Farming Course Will Prepare You For a Budding Career!

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The cut flower industry is an expanding sector of the horticulture industry and those with experience are in demand! This course is ideal for home gardeners, landscapers, commercial flower growers or those who would like to work in flower farming.

The Certificate of Cut Flower Production is a professional development course that will teach you the fundamentals of growing cut flowers as a commercial enterprise.

In this flower farming course, you will learn which flowers are the best varieties to grow in your region; study how to determine soil, nutritional requirements and cultural requirements; and explore harvest and post-harvest management practices.

You’ll also discover how to develop a production plan for a cut flower crop, determine export market opportunities, and prepare a management plan including equipment tasks, marketing strategies, production costs and contingency plans.

Learning Outcomes

Outcomes achieved by undertaking a flower farming course include:

  • Learning about the scope and nature of the flower industry and the international flower market
  • Exploring how to succeed in the trade and gaining insights into hydroponic culture
  • Studying flower structure, the development of a flower and plant growth, roots, stems, flowers and leaves
  • Gaining insights into the different types of flowers, bulbs and perennials
  • Understanding flower crops – alstroemeria, antirrhinum, amaryllis, anigozanthus, aster carnation, chrysanthemum, dahlia, freesia, gerbera, cladiolus, iris, narcissus, orchids, rose, stock and more!
  • Learning about soil names, its texture, composition and structure and colloids and peds
  • Exploring the characteristics of clay, sand and loam soils and how to improve soil fertility and structure
  • Studying soil life, the types of soil water and how to analyse soil and improve soil water retention
  • Gaining insights into soil degradation and rehabilitation and soil’s nutrient elements
  • Understanding fertilisers, composting methods, soil mixes and potting media
  • Learning about cultural practices including site selection, cultivation techniques and different crops
  • Exploring planting procedures including staking, planting, mulching, pruning and managing pests and weather
  • Studying water management and different types of irrigation systems
  • Gaining insights into the types of weeds, weed control and the classification of weedicides
  • Understanding flower initiation and development
  • Learning how to manage flower longevity and control flowering
  • Exploring the types of flower response to temperature
  • Studying seed sources
  • Gaining insights into hydroponics for controlled growth
  • Understanding pest and disease control
  • Learning about integrated pest management and chemical and non-chemical methods of pest control
  • Exploring anthracnose, blight, canker, galls, leaf spot, rots, rust, smut, mould, mildew, virus, wilt and more!
  • Studying caterpillars, leafhoppers, mealy bugs, millipedes, mites, nematodes, slugs, snails, whitefly and more!
  • Gaining insights into viruses and environmental problems
  • Understanding Australian natives and related plants
  • Learning about Proteaceae plants and their culture and propagation
  • Exploring Anigozanthus
  • Studying other Australian cut flowers
  • Gaining insights into greenhouse culture including their components and systems
  • Understanding the different types of greenhouses and how to site them
  • Learning how to sell successfully

And more!

 

How Are Plants Named?

With hundreds of thousands of flowering plants in the world, naming them could be considered a daunting process. But thanks to science, flower names are taken from the Latin language, and this formula ensures everyone is talking the same flower language (something you’ll soon discover if you take our flower farming course)!

All plant species have two names — a genus name (which is like a surname) and a species name (which is like a given name) — and both are always written in italics. The genus name always begins with a capital letter (for example, Hydrangea), and the species name with a lower-case letter (for example, macrophylla). The result is written Hydrangea macrophylla.

However, selected plant forms can also have a third name chosen for their particular attributes, known as a cultivar name (abbreviated “cv.”). Cultivars are essentially hybrids, which are propagated vegetatively by cutting, division, grafting, cloning or layering two different plants to produce cross-pollination. The seeds that result will give rise to a number of genetically different plants. The best are selected, and are then propagated to maintain their specific attributes — for example, Hydrangea macrophylla ‘Hamburg’.

It can take many years of hybridisation and selection to produce a new cultivar, so plant breeders will often register them under the Plant Breeders’ Rights (PBR). Those plants are then identified with a PBR symbol.

Most Popular Flowers of 2020

Some plants are prized for their unique beauty, others for their fragrance, and others just follow cultural trends depending on the region or country they are grown in. Here are some of the most popular flowers of 2020.

Roses

Roses have always been, and still are the most popular cut flower in the world, however, admirers are getting a little fussier. Preference now sways towards perfumed garden rose varieties that have a fuller bloom and unique colouring — from burgundy to brown and coffee colours.

Lisianthus

Also known as Eusoma, the delicate ruffled petals of this flower have always been popular, but more recently, unique colours are in demand. Rather than purples, whites and pinks, people are choosing browns, champagnes and autumn tones as found in the Wonderous and Rosanne Brown varieties.

Hydrangeas

Hydrangeas is a genus of 70 to 75 species of flowering plants that are renowned for their large, vibrant blooms, and are becoming increasingly popular in homes and gardens around Australia. Colours range from traditional whites to blues, pinks, reds, and light and dark purples.

Grasses and leaves

The floral world has embraced sustainability with people choosing more interesting leaves and grasses for their gardens and floral arrangements. Muted colours are popular but also tropical foliage that has lots of variegation (the appearance of differently coloured zones in the leaves) such as in Calathea and pampas grasses.

Australian natives

Australian natives are also enjoying a resurgence, particularly those exhibiting bright reds or pastels. Examples include orange and salmon pink Haemodoraceaes (known as Kangaroo Paw), the yellow-gold Pycnosorus (also known as the Billy Button) and bright pink and red Waratahs.

Fun Flower Facts

Flowers are adored across the world, but many also have amazing hidden attributes. Here are some weird and wonderful facts about flowers that will inspire you to undertake our flower farming course.

  1. The world’s oldest flower was discovered by scientists in China in 2002. The Archaefructus Sinensis looks a little like our modern-day water lily and was believed to have been in bloom 125 million years ago.
  2. Dandelions may be deemed as weeds, but their leaves and flowers are actually a great source of iron, calcium, potassium and vitamins C and A. And yes, they are edible!
  3. The humble daisy had a range of medicinal properties, from easing coughs and slowing bleeding to relieving indigestion and back pain.
  4. Roses are not only a romantic flower, they have lots of tasty relations including raspberries, apples, plums, pears, cherries, nectarines, peaches and almonds.
  5. The world’s largest flower is also one of the smelliest! The Titan Arum (also known as the Corpse Flower) is over three metres tall, and its aroma smells like rotten flesh. Nice!
  6. Continuing on with the smelly theme … the Dictamnus may look pretty but is known as the Gas Plant as it secretes clear gas on warm nights (that can be apparently be ignited with a match).
  7. Cooking and have run out of onions? The bulb from a tulip can be used as a replacement in many recipes and its petals are also edible — they taste like lettuce or salad greens depending on the season.
  8. The sunflower is not only a happy looking plant, it’s also clever. It follows the sun throughout the day in its journey from east to west.
  9. It takes over two thousand roses to produce one gram of rose oil.
  10. White flowers give off a stronger scent than colourful flowers.
  11. Broccoli is actually a flower — more specifically, it is the flower head of a plant belonging to the cabbage family.
  12. The world’s most expensive spice, saffron, comes from a type of crocus flower. The crimson stigma and styles (called threads) are collected and dried before they’re sold.
  13. Foxglove is an old English name that is thought to have derived from a belief that foxes slipped their feet into the plant’s leaves to sneak up on their prey.
  14. The colour of a Hydrangea is determined by the acidity of the soil it’s planted in. If it is too alkaline it will result in pink Hydrangeas!
  15. The dandelion is the only flower that represents the three celestial bodies of the sun, moon and stars. The flower resembles the sun, the puffball, the moon and the dispersing seeds, the stars. Lovely.

 

Obtain a comprehensive understand of cut flower processes for commercial production and increase your flower power with a flower farming course, such as our Certificate of Cut Flower Production.

Study Our Food Coaching Course to Deliver Positive Change

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An increasingly important sector in the life coaching space, food coaching helps clients develop strategies, change their eating habits and enhance their motivation to improve their overall wellbeing. This course is ideal for food coaches, personal trainers and weight loss consultants.

The Certificate of Food Coaching is a professional development course that will develop your understanding of the scope and nature of food coaching, including helping clients examine their lifestyle and how it might be affecting their diet and health goals.

In this food coaching course, you will learn about the ethical, practical and legal implications of becoming an effective, responsible and successful food coach practitioner.

You will also study the professional standards for food coaching, the management practices for a food coaching business, and the specialised dietary requirements for children, adults, seniors and those with dietary issues and chronic conditions.

 

Learning Outcomes

Outcomes achieved by undertaking a food coaching course include:

  1. Learning the scope and nature of food coaching and why it’s necessary
  2. Exploring how to meet with clients and conduct the initial interview
  3. Studying how to gather information and examine the problem and the history of the problem
  4. Understanding how to assess a client’s current diet and lifestyle and take baseline measurements
  5. Learning about serving sizes, supplements, frequency of eating, and food plates and pyramids
  6. Exploring the professional standards for food coaching
  7. Studying the Code of Ethics, confidentiality and informed consent
  8. Gaining insights into making ethical decisions including guidelines
  9. Examining legal concerns and how to keep records
  10. Understanding occupational health and safety responsibilities
  11. Learning about chronic conditions and specialist diets
  12. Exploring high blood pressure and high cholesterol
  13. Studying cancer, diabetes and heart disease
  14. Gaining insights into autism, HIV and celiac/coeliac disease
  15. Understanding dairy intolerance and dairy-free and vegetarian diets
  16. Learning about body fat percentage and how to measure body fat including the skin-fold method
  17. Exploring ultrasounds and the weight-to-height ratio
  18. Gaining insights into the health risks of overeating including binge eating
  19. Studying weight loss plans and the treatments for obesity
  20. Gaining insights into the physiological and psychological reasons people overeat
  21. Examining poor nutrition diets including poor quality diets and not eating enough
  22. Understanding the eating disorders associated with weight loss and the causes of these
  23. Learning about anorexia nervosa, bulimia and their signs and symptoms
  24. Exploring body image and self-esteem
  25. Studying food coaching with adults and seniors

And more!

Why is Food Coaching Important?

Many of the government-funded health initiatives are based on educating the general public about diet and food choices. However, often people lack personal motivation and knowledge to commit to changes despite being well educated, and many struggle with fad diets and other poor eating choices. Many also don’t realise how their poor diet is affecting their wellbeing, whether it’s feeling bloated or sluggish or contributing to other health issues … and just stop trying.

While there are diet and nutrition practitioners in the industry, most don’t offer food coaching. With the help of a food coaching course, food coaches can help motivate clients to make a better choice and worthwhile changes. They help clients understand the benefits of what they are doing and give lots of encouragement, keep them on track and offer them support and feedback.

Insights into the Australian Diet

According to a report done by the Australian Institute of Health and Welfare, Australians of all ages generally have a poor diet. That is, they don’t eat enough of the five food groups and eat too many foods high in fat, salt and sugar. A poor diet can lead to stroke, high blood pressure, coronary heart disease, type 2 diabetes and some forms of cancer (to name a few) — conditions you will become familiar with when studying our food coaching course.

How is Food Associated with Health?

Our diet plays an important role in our overall health and wellbeing. Food provides nutrients, energy and other components that, if are inadequate, can result in ill health. However, ill-health can’t be contributed to one food component — behavioural, environmental, biological, genetic and societal factors are also involved. In the optimal diet, the supply of the required nutrients and energy should be adequate for tissue repair, maintenance and growth. The fats, vitamins, minerals, proteins and carbohydrates required are met by eating a wide variety of nutritious foods.

What Should We Eat?

The Australian Dietary Guidelines provide advice on healthy eating habits to “promote overall health and wellbeing, reduce the risk of diet-related disease and protect against chronic conditions”. They recommend Australians eat a wide variety of nutritious foods from the five food groups every day, as essential nutrients are found in varying amounts in many different food groups (although the guidelines differ according to age).

The five food groups include:

  • Vegetables and legumes/beans including plenty of different types and colours
  • Fruit
  • Grain/cereal foods like bread, pasta, rice, noodles, couscous, cereals, oats, polenta, barley and quinoa that are mostly wholegrain and/or high fibre varieties
  • Lean meats and alternatives like fish, poultry, tofu, eggs, nuts and seeds
  • Reduced-fat dairy like milk, cheese and yoghurt and/or their alternatives (however, reduced-fat milk are not suitable for children under two years of age)
  • Plenty of water!

 

How to Measure a Healthy Weight

More than six out of ten Australian adults are overweight or obese which can lead to serious health problems … and that figure is rising. Two methods to measure a healthy weight you will learn about in our food coaching course are how to measure g Body Mass Index (BMI) and waist circumference.

Body Mass Index (BMI)

BMI uses a person’s height and weight to determine whether an adult is within the healthy weight range, or overweight, obese or underweight. It also provides an estimate of total body fat as a proportion of total body weight, which can give insights into the risk of developing weight-related diseases. It is calculated by dividing an adult’s weight by the square of their height. If you calculate your BMI yourself, you must make sure your weight is in kilograms and your height is in centimetres.

The government’s Health Direct website has a BMI calculator that indicates any health risks in relation to your BMI and offers information on your personal results. However, typically, BMI ranges fall into these categories:

  • Under 18.5 – you are underweight
  • 18.5 – 24.9 – you are at a healthy weight range
  • 25.0 – 29.9 – you are overweight
  • 30.0 and above – you are obese

BMI is less accurate for assessing healthy weight in some groups of people because it does not distinguish between the proportion of weight due to muscle or fat. It can be less accurate in:

  • Certain ethnic groups, such as Aboriginal peoples, Pacific Islander populations (including Maori and Torres Strait Islander peoples), Chinese, South Asian and Japanese population groups
  • Weight lifters or bodybuilders
  • Some high-performance athletes
  • Pregnant women
  • The elderly
  • People with a physical disability
  • People with eating disorders
  • People under 18 years of age
  • Those with extreme obesity

Waist Circumference

Waist circumference is an estimate of visceral fat, which is the dangerous internal fat that coats the organs. Carrying excess body fat around your middle is more of a health risk than if weight is on your thighs and hips. It is, therefore, a more accurate predictor of Type 2 diabetes in women, cardiovascular risk and metabolic syndrome.

The waist circumference thresholds that indicate an increased risk of disease are:

  • If you are a woman, your risk is increased at 80 centimetres
  • If you are a woman, your risk is greatly increased at 88 centimetres or more
  • If you are a man, your risk is increased at 94 centimetres or more
  • If you are a man, your risk is greatly increased at 102 centimetres or more

 

To measure your waist circumference:

  1. Place a tape measure directly on your skin or over no more than one layer of light clothing.
  2. The correct place to measure your waist is halfway between the top of your hipbone and your lowest rib, which is roughly in line with your belly button.
  3. Breathe out normally and measure.
  4. Make sure the tape is snug, without squeezing the skin.

Again, these waist circumference measurements only apply to adults, not to children. They also don’t apply to people from certain non-European backgrounds, pregnant women or people with a medical condition involving an enlargement of the abdomen.

 

Gain the essential nutrition, coaching and management skills you need to launch or improve your food coaching career with a food coaching course, such as our Certificate of Food Coaching.

Aqua Fitness Course Perfect for Water Lovers!

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Water is therapeutic, builds cardio, strength and resistance, all while being gentle on joints and providing a cool and relaxing environment to exercise – what’s not to love!

If you have a passion for fitness and love water, try aqua fitness! Whether you want to instruct clients in water-based classes or discover techniques for your own fitness, our Certificate of Aqua Fitness is ideal professional development for you.

The course will teach you how to deliver ideal, low impact water-based fitness classes and educate others on the health benefits of aqua fitness. You will also learn how to target specific muscle groups, incorporate water resistance, which equipment is required, and health and safety in the pool.

This aqua fitness course will help you design an aqua fitness program and write a program plan to boost clients’ results in the pool. You’ll also discover important leadership and communication skills to ensure client success and that classes run smoothly.

Learning Outcomes

Outcomes achieved by undertaking an aqua fitness course include:

  • Gain an understanding of how aqua fitness activities differ from other fitness activities.
  • Learn the skills and knowledge that will aid in selecting, using, and managing equipment and facilities required for aqua fitness activities.
  • Gain an understanding of a wide range of different aerobic and anaerobic movements used in aqua fitness programs.
  • Develop an understanding of the principles underlying the design of an appropriate aqua fitness program.
  • Develop an understanding of the aqua fitness training requirements of special needs groups.
  • Learn and develop knowledge of the importance of the design and skills to deliver appropriate aqua-based programs to improve/maintain aerobic fitness.
  • Gain an understanding of skills that will enable better leadership of an aqua fitness session.

 

And more!

Aqua Fitness is Ideal Professional Development For:

  • Rehabilitation professions – physiology, occupational therapy, physiotherapy
  • Sports coaches
  • Physical education teachers
  • Personal trainers
  • Swimming teachers

 

Why Become a Fitness Professional?

There are many reasons to choose fitness as a profession, from an interest in helping others improve their fitness to maintaining your own overall health and wellbeing.

Fitness professionals teach, assess, train and supervise clients in health and fitness settings, such as gyms, sports centres, clubs and community and recreational centres.

Fitness instructors can choose to specialise in specific fields, from personal training and group fitness classes to aqua-fitness, resistance training, swimming and more.

But, one thing’s certain, would-be fitness professionals have a passion for health – their own and helping others achieve their goals.

Do you think you’d make a great fitness professional? Considering specialising in aqua fitness? If so, take a look at the qualities and requirements you’ll need to be successful.

 

Qualities of an Aqua-Fitness Professional

  • Good level of physical fitness
  • Swimming ability
  • Enthusiastic
  • Outgoing personality
  • Good communication skills

 

8 Great Benefits of Water-Based Fitness!

Aqua fitness is often thought of as leisurely– but that’s far from accurate. But the truth is, working out in water burns serious calories. In fact, the average thirty-minute pool workout burns about 300 calories! To put that into perspective, it burns more calories than the same amount of time running at a moderate pace, which burns approximately 270 calories.

But that’s not all – aqua fitness puts less strain on muscles, joints and heart, builds strength, increases range of motion and prevents overheating.

 

  1. Supports the body

Of all the wondrous benefits of water, its ability to support the body while exercising is most wonderful. Water-resistance means there is less strain on all muscles and joints and less chance of injury!

 

  1. Builds strength and endurance

The resistance of water is significantly greater than air. So, the resistance in the pool ensures the body’s muscles get a rigorous workout. In fact, when people choose to partake in aqua fitness, they make substantial gains in strength, flexibility, and agility.

Additionally, unlike traditional weights, which require the human body to push and pull against the weight and gravity, water resistance is more natural.  As a result, this exercise builds endurance as the body strains through the water instead of against it.

 

  1. Less strain on the heart

Water pressure enables one’s blood flow to circulate more effectively throughout the body, effectively decreasing blood pressure and eventually even decreasing resting heart rate. So, aqua fitness puts less stress on the heart!

 

  1. Greater flexibility

During aqua fitness exercise, the resistance of water while performing movements in various directions and adjusting to push and pull motions, naturally increase the joints range of motion. As a result, there is a significant increase in flexibility after aqua exercise.

 

  1. Prevents overheating

It’s little wonder that aqua fitness is such a popular summer activity, as working out in water helps prevent overheating. As a result, it allows you to exercise for longer.

 

  1. Reduces stress

The calming nature of water alongside the benefits of exercise helps reduce stress levels and anxiety – and may even improve sleep!

 

  1. Burns calories

Aqua fitness helps you burn 500 to 1000 calories per hour! When you exercise in cold water, your body burns more calories to keep you warm.

The more calories you burn, the more weight you lose. Besides, the water massages your muscles in a way that helps tone them.

 

  1. Social interaction

Aqua fitness is one of the most popular bonding activities for friends and family. The training is excellent for younger people who enjoy the water while still appealing to older generations and their need to maintain a moderate level of fitness.

Water also has a relaxing and fun vibe, encouraging laughter and conversation – the best medicine of all!

 

Instruct water-based training programs and educate clients on the inherent health benefits with an aqua fitness course such as our Certificate of Aqua Fitness.

Turn Over a New Career Leaf With Our Indoor Plants Course

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Searching for some lush interior design inspiration? Our Introduction to Indoor Plants course is ideal for homeowners or gardeners wanting to indulge their passion and create naturally beautiful spaces. It will also offer inspiration to nursery workers, horticulturalists, florists, interior designers, plant suppliers and event managers who want to gain the commercial skills to choose, grow, maintain and sell indoor plants.

This indoor plants course will teach you how to identify hundreds of indoor plants and understand the optimal growing conditions for specific plant varieties. You will also learn about acclimatisation, and how to innovatively present plants for indoor environments like workplaces and at special events.

Learning Outcomes

Outcomes achieved by undertaking an indoor plants course include:

  • Learning about plant naming and pronunciation
  • Reviewing indoor plant families
  • Understanding interior environments
  • Studying plants for different light conditions
  • Gaining insights into problems with indoor plants
  • Learning about potting media and how to pot up
  • Exploring container selection
  • Gaining an understanding of container selection
  • Studying how to manage plant nutrition
  • Gaining insights into pruning indoor plants
  • Understanding how to propagate and care for young indoor plants
  • Learning how to acclimatize indoor plants
  • Exploring how to help plants survive neglect
  • Studying how to manage plant health indoors
  • Gaining insights into foliage plants
  • Understanding how to grow palms inside
  • Learning about palm genera
  • Exploring how to select and grow ferns inside
  • Studying other foliage plant genera
  • Gaining insights into flowering plants
  • Examining orchids, African violets and poinsettia
  • Understanding other genera grown for flowers indoors
  • Learning about herbs, vines and climbers
  • Exploring how to make the best use of indoor plants
  • Deciding where to place an indoor plant
  • Studying how to manage colour and use mirrors
  • Gaining insights into plants in baskets
  • Understanding indoor hydroponics
  • Learning about miniature gardens
  • Exploring the interior plantscaping industry
  • Studying how to grow in greenhouses
  • Gaining insights into environmental control

And more!

Inspiring Indoor Plant Trends for 2021

If you’re interested in an indoor plants course, you may come across the Swiss cheese plant (monstera deliciosa) and the fiddle-leaf fig (ficus lyrata), which have recently been at the forefront of the indoor plant phenomena. However, if you’re ready to test your green thumb out on a few new feature plants, check out our top picks for 2021. 

Cacti and Succulents

Did you know that Australia is the earth’s driest inhabited continent? And with water restrictions in place and widespread drought across the country, it’s no surprise that succulents and cacti are becoming increasingly popular in gardens and homes. Hardy and drought-tolerant, there are literally thousands of unique and beautiful varieties to choose from. And the best bit? They’re virtually indestructible, so are perfect for novice gardeners.

Banana Palm

Take your greenery obsession to the next level with a banana palm, which will not only turn your home into a tropical paradise but add a touch of drama to your interiors as well. Also known as ornamental bananas, one of the more popular varieties is the Red Banana (Musa velutina), which has yellow flowers and reddish leaves. Other varieties include Musa zebrina, which has beautifully striped leaves, and Musa acuminata, which is renowned for its fragrant, edible fruit. 

Olive Tree

Did you know the olive tree is the oldest cultivated tree in the world? And it’s not surprising given they can survive with little water and poor soils, and their thin, hard leaves are adapted to expertly prevent water loss. Typically an outdoor plant, they are becoming an increasingly popular choice for indoor gardeners. Olive trees flourish in locations with cool winters and hot dry summers, and with their thin grey branches and soft green leaves, make an elegant interior design statement.

Cast Iron Plant

Although its name may be at odds with this plant’s soft, wispy leaves, the Aspidistra Elatior is aptly named because of its ability to withstand even the most adverse conditions. Not to be confused with the Peace Lily (which has similarly shaped leaves), it has evergreen leaves that rise up from rhizomatous roots to create a stunning leafy and lush display. 

Narrow-leaf Fig

A distant cousin of the fiddle leaf fig, Ficus longifolia is one of the new favourites in homes as an indoor pot plant or feature plant. It has an elegant, delicate and graceful branching habit that lends itself to the light and airy interiors that are so ‘now’ in the interior decorating world. This plant can grow up to ten metres, and if kept indoors, prefers cooler climates and shaded or part-shaded areas.

Five Indoor Plants Native to Australia

Australia has a wide range of native plants that grow wonderfully well indoors. Once you’ve completed our inspirational indoor plants course, you may find yourself becoming a collector who is always looking for something new! Like these beauties …

#1 – Kentia Palm

The Howea forsteriana is so well-known, many gardeners will be unaware that it actually originated on Lord Howe Island, which is located around 600 kilometres off the coast of Australia. It has a thin, slender trunk with feather-shaped, drooping fronds, and flowers annually around November. When young, the trunk is dark green but it turns brown as it ages. They are adaptable to a variety of conditions, including indoor challenges like air conditioning, central heating and low sunlight exposure!

#2 – Moreton Bay Chestnut

Native to coastal beaches and rainforests, the Castanospermum australe is a hardy tree with glossy, dark green leaves and yellow and red pea-shaped flowers that appear from October to November. They flower again March to May where they produce cylindrical pods that look like large magic beans. It makes an ideal indoor plant as it tolerates low, filtered light, and can be propagated from seedlings … the more the merrier we say!

#3 – Palm Lily

The Cordyline stricta is a tall, narrow plant that produces an upright trunk with strappy, drooping leaves. It produces beautiful pale purple flowers in summer followed by black berries (the only Australian Cordyline species to do so). When grown in an indoor pot, it can reach three metres in height and has a sparser, compact growth habit. It is tolerant of low water and light, so is an attractive and low maintenance choice for an indoor ornamental plant.

#4 – Umbrella Tree

Schefflera actinophylla is so easy to grow that it’s actually classified as a weed in parts of its native Queensland! It is a multi-trunk tree that can grow to over 15 metres outdoors, but regular pruning will maintain the required size indoors. If you are concerned, you could also consider the dwarf version, Schefflera arboricola. Regardless, this is a striking plant with glossy green leaves that drape down like an umbrella from its long stem. It makes for striking feature plants when grown in a decorative pot.

#5 – Dragon Tails Plant

A beautiful fast-growing indoor plant, Epipremnum pinnatum has deep green leaves that split from their edges to their centres with lush new growth that resembles … you guessed it! A dragon’s tail. They require very little care indoors and can be grown in hanging baskets or in pots with a totem to cling to … as they love to climb! They prefer low light, filtered positions as they mimic the shade that would be offered by a taller tropical tree’s canopy in their natural environment.

 

Make educated and inspirational decisions about how to select, grow, care for and sell indoor plants with indoor plant courses such as our Introduction to Indoor Plants.

Diversify Your Garden With Our Bush Tucker Plants Course

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Our Introduction to Bush Tucker Plants course is ideal for anyone interested in native bush foods — from landscapers and tour guides to chefs and plant lovers. Be inspired to create edible gardens and enhance your menus!

Since the 1970s, there has been a growing recognition of the gourmet and nutritional value of native foods and the industry continues to grow. This has led to the expansion of commercial cultivation, and today, a number of bush foods are used in restaurant menus and packaged as gourmet foods across Australia … and the world!

Our bush tucker plants course will help you identify, cultivate, harvest and use bush tucker plants. You will learn about the different types of edible Australian plants, and how to prepare and use them in beverages, meals and as flavourings. You will also gain insights into foods that may be used as crops to create new menu items and produce new food products.

Learning Outcomes

Outcomes achieved by undertaking a bush tucker plants course include:

  • Learning about what bush tucker plants are edible
  • Exploring plant toxins and which plants to be cautious with
  • Studying the nutritional value of bush tucker
  • Gaining insights into naming plants and plant identification
  • Examining plant families and how to pronounce plant names
  • Understanding hybrids, varieties and cultivars
  • Learning about soils, how to improve it and grow plants on low fertility soils
  • Exploring how to plant, feed, mulch, prune and propagate plants
  • Studying how to collect, store and germinate seeds
  • Gaining insights into handling and raising seedlings
  • Examining asexual propagation – cuttings, division, etc.
  • Understanding ethics and bush foods as a commercial venture
  • Learning how to design and develop a bush food garden
  • Exploring how to select shrubs and native trees for a bush tucker garden
  • Studying how to select small indigenous Australian plants for a bush tucker garden
  • Gaining insights into rainforest and desert gardens
  • Examining edible arid zone bush tucker plants
  • Understanding water management and bush tucker plants
  • Learning about bush tucker nuts and seeds
  • Exploring macadamia, araucaria and Aleurites moluccana
  • Studying Atherton Oak, Castanospermum australe and Hicksbeachia pinnatifolia
  • Gaining insights into acacias (like Wattleseed Essense) and how to use them
  • Understanding bush tucker vegetables
  • Learning about Native Spinach, Pigface, Longleaf Mat Rush and Bush Tomatoes
  • Exploring Sea Celery, Swamp Water Fern, Yam Daisy and Wild Yams
  • Studying native lilies, native ginger and seaweeds
  • Gaining insights into bush tucker fruits including Astroloma and Midgen Berry
  • Learning about Appleberry, Davidson’s Plum, Native Figs and Bush Cherries
  • Exploring Black Apple, Santalum and Native Raspberry
  • Studying bush tucker flavourings, teas and essences
  • Gaining insights into Backhousia, Curcuma, Eucalyptus and Leptospermum
  • Understanding Grevillea, Acacia, Alpinia caerulea and Tasmannia

And more!

 

The History of Bush Tucker

Indigenous Australians have eaten native plant foods and prepared them with traditional methods of processing and cooking for an estimated 60,000 years of human habitation. An estimated 5000 species of native foods have been also used, and you will discover many of these when studying our bush tucker plants course. But ever wondered how they made their way into modern-day cooking? Read on …

Colonisation

From 1788 to around 1901 in the more densely colonised areas of Australia, the introduction of non-native foods to Indigenous people resulted in a decrease in the consumption of native foods. This was further accentuated by the loss of traditional lands and the destruction of the native habitats that were used for agriculture. And although bush tucker provided a source of nutrition that often supplemented the meagre rations of non-Indigenous colonial settlers, much of it was deemed ‘inedible’.

Modern use

The first small-scale commercial plantation of native food plants in Australia was in the 1880s with the propagation of macadamia nut crops. From the 1970s, non-Indigenous Australians began to recognise the value of native Australian foods. Books such as Wildfoods in Australia — produced in 1981 by botanists Joan and Alan Cribb — became popular, and horticulturists started to assess more and more native plants for cultivation and commercial use.

By the mid-1980s, several Sydney restaurants began using native Australian ingredients in their recipes, providing the first opportunity for bush foods to be tried on a gourmet level. The late 1980s saw a surge in interest, with the production of bush tucker TV programs and books like Wild Food Plants of Australia by Tim Low and The Bushfood Handbook by Vic Cherikoff.

One of the great advantages of growing native foods is that they are ecologically sound and can be well-adapted to Australia’s climate. Bush tucker ingredients were initially harvested from the wild, but cultivated sources have become increasingly important to provide a sustainable supply for the growing market. Organisations are also working to increase Indigenous participation in the bush tucker market. Nowadays, many restaurants now use native plant spices for flavour. Producers have also sprung up across the country, including plantations of pepper, bush tomatoes, native citrus and quandongs.

Researchers are also becoming more involved. This year, the University of Queensland conducted a study into a fruit native to Arnhem Land known as Buchanania obovata, or the green plum. Consumed for more than 53,000 years but previously unknown among non-Indigenous people, they learnt more about this plant from people in the remote community of Yirrkala. The nutritional analysis showed high levels of dietary fibre, protein, and among the highest folate levels of commercially available fruits. As such, its potential as a commercial crop for Indigenous communities is being investigated.

 

Five Bush Tucker Plants For Your Garden

A bush tucker plants course will introduce you to the unique beauty (and taste!) of Australia’s indigenous flora. Planting them in your garden is also a great way to increase the resilience and diversity of other plants. Here are five culinary companions for you to consider …

Blue Flax Lily

Dianella caerulea is a hardy perennial bush perfect for a pot or corner of your garden bed. This is a hardy plant which can handle a range of growing conditions. It produces blue, star-shaped flowers in spring followed by flushes of edible blue berries, which are sweet and delicious. The roots can be pounded and roasted, and the leaves also produce a strong, silky fibre that can be used to make baskets!

Finger Lime

Citrus australasica is also known as lime caviar because of the bead-like morsels of citrusy goodness that the fruit produces. It is a thorny, small shrub that is native to the rainforests on the Queensland/New South Wales border. Depending on the variety, the plants yield delicious limes that are coloured from green to pink. Because it is an understorey shrub, it will produce the best harvest if grown in dappled shade in an unexposed spot.

Native Ginger

Alpinia caerulea is another understorey rainforest plant and a herb that can grow up to two metres tall. The ginger-scented rhizome can be used in desserts, marmalades, jams and savoury dishes. And although the seeds shouldn’t be eaten, the bright blue berries have a slightly sour, lemony-ginger flavour, which can be dried to make tea. This is a shade-loving perennial that prefers moist soil, and it can be grown in pots, borders or in narrow pool-side garden beds.

Warrigal Greens

Tetragonia tetragonioides is also known as Botany Bay Spinach or New Zealand Spinach and is a hardy groundcover plant that grows in beach and forest areas from Victoria to Queensland. The leaves are edible and should be prepared like silverbeet and blanched before consuming. This plant works well in vertical gardens and pots or as edible mulch beneath your favourite potted citrus tree.

Native Rosella

Hibiscus Sabdariffa is an erect and bushy shrub that grows up to 2.5 metres high. In late summer, white to pale yellow funnel-shaped flowers with crimson centres are produced.  The whole plant is edible — from the leaves to the roots and shoots. The red calyxes make great cordials and jams and can be preserved whole in syrup, and the leaves can be cooked like spinach or added to salads. It prefers well-drained soil high in organic matter and will add personality and colour to your garden.

 

Learn how to identify, use and cultivate bush tucker plants to create diverse gardens and delicious new menus with a bush tucker plants course, such as our Introduction to Bush Tucker Plants. 

Educational Psychology Course for Teaching and Learning

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If you work in a school or educational setting and want to understand the psychology of learning better, this course is ideal for you.

Educators need to understand learning, thinking, motivation and the ability to comprehend and retain knowledge. The Certificate of Educational Psychology is an online professional development course that will introduce you to the theories, principles and practices of education and learning psychology.

You will learn about psychological theory, assessment and intervention, challenges in learning styles, classroom and behaviour management and discipline.

This course will help you to understand how and why people learn and how to apply that understanding to bring about positive change in people of all ages.

 

Learning Outcomes

Outcomes achieved by undertaking an educational psychology course include:

  • Piaget’s Stages of Development
  • Assimilation and Accommodation
  • Equilibration
  • he Evolution of Behavioural Theories of Learning
  • Thorndike’s Theory of the Law of Effect
  • Skinner’s Theory of Operant Conditioning
  • Principles of Behavioural Learning; Reinforcers
  • Positive and Negative Reinforcement
  • The Premack Principle
  • Information Processing Theory
  • A Model of Information Processing
  • Perception
  • Gestalt Psychology
  • Remembering and Forgetting
  • Interference
  • Inhibition and Facilitation
  • Effective Instruction
  • The QAIT Model
  • Quality of Instruction
  • Appropriate Levels of Instruction
  • Between-Class Ability Grouping
  • What is a Constructivist View?
  • Top-Down or Bottom-Up Processing
  • Motivational Theories
  • Behavioural Learning Theory

And more!

Careers That Benefit from Educational Psychology Courses

People who understand learning have the ability to teach proficiently. As such, anyone who wants to teach or train others, in any discipline, can benefit from a professional development course in educational psychology. However, the following professions will benefit most from gaining an understanding of how people learn.

  • Music teacher
  • Life coach
  • Language teacher
  • Adult educator
  • Youth leader
  • Workplace trainer
  • Teacher’s Aide
  • Rehabilitation worker
  • Tour guide
  • Product demonstrator
  • Marketing professionals
  • Fitness instructors
  • Supervisors

What Do Educational Psychologists Do?  

Educational psychologists are concerned with the scientific study of human learning. They investigate learning and teaching, develop psychological techniques and improve learning outcomes for individuals and groups.

In today’s complex education sector, educational psychologists are instrumental in assisting educators, administrators, teachers, and students in understanding how to help people learn.

If you’re interested in a career as an educational psychologist, you’ll need a postgraduate degree in psychology and supervised practice in an educational setting.

 

Disciplines of Educational Psychology

Educational psychology involves not just learning processes of early childhood and adolescence but also the social, emotional and cognitive processes involved in learning throughout the entire lifespan.

Development Psychology

Jean Piaget: Father of Developmental Psychology.

Developmental psychology is the scientific study of how and why human beings change throughout their life. Initially concerned with infants and children, the field has expanded to include adolescence, adult development, aging, and the entire lifespan.

Behavioural Psychology

Behaviourism, also known as behavioural psychology, is a theory of learning based on the idea that all behaviours are acquired through conditioning. Conditioning occurs through interaction with the environment. Behaviourists believe that responses to environmental stimuli shape actions.

Behaviourism was formally established with the 1913 publication of John B. Watson’s classic paper, “Psychology as the Behaviorist Views It.”

John B Watson often considered the father of behaviourism, sums up his theory in this classic quote:

“Give me a dozen healthy infants, well-formed, and my own specified world to bring them up in and I’ll guarantee to take any one at random and train him to become any type of specialist I might select—doctor, lawyer, artist, merchant-chief and, yes, even beggar-man and thief, regardless of his talents, penchants, tendencies, abilities, vocations, and race of his ancestors. (1930)”

Cognitive Psychology  

Cognitive psychology is the study of how we think. It involves the study of internal mental processes—such as perception, thinking, memory, attention, language, problem-solving, and learning.

 

 5 Famous Figures That Shaped Educational Psychology

Psychology, as a profession has been around for about one hundred and fifty years. In that time, a few key figures have made a significant contribution to the field, including John Locke, Alfred Binet, John Dewey, Jean Piaget and B.F Skinner.

#1  John Locke: An English philosopher who suggested the concept of tabula rasa, which is basically the idea that the mind is a blank canvas at birth and that knowledge is then acquired through experience and learning.

#2 Alfred Binet: A French psychologist who developed the first intelligence tests.

#3  John Dewey: An influential American psychologist and educational reformer who wrote extensively about progressive education and the importance of learning through doing.

#4  Jean Piaget: A Swiss psychologist who is best known for his highly influential theory of cognitive development.

#5  B.F. Skinner: An American behaviourist who introduced the concept of operational conditioning. His research on reinforcement and punishment continues to play an essential role in education today.

 

If you work in education or have skills or knowledge you’d like to share, an educational psychology course like our Certificate of Educational Psychology will make you a better teacher.

Gain In-Demand Skills With Course Writing Training

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Course writing is very different from other types of writing, and its focus is essentially on communicating a learning pathway. Ideal for teachers, trainers and even students themselves, our Certificate of Course Writing and Development will introduce you to the fundamentals of course creation.

You will learn how to understand study levels and recognition and accreditation systems, write curriculum materials to meet learning outcomes, and identify and obtain qualified sources to support course materials.

You will also study educational applications for digital technologies; summative, cumulative and formative assessments; educational applications for digital technologies; how to be guided by assessment policies and procedures; and the marking guidelines for assignments.

Learning Outcomes

Outcomes achieved by undertaking course writing training include:

  • Learning about approaches to education and specialist or generalist education
  • Exploring teacher-centred learning and competency-based training
  • Studying student-centred learning – PBL, experiential, Montessori, self-paced learning
  • Gaining insights into delivery modes, course aims and trends, ethics and equity
  • Understanding issues for learning – lifelong learning, reinforcement, foundation skill development
  • Learning about education contextualisation
  • Exploring how to develop courses, course outlines, study notes and curriculum documentation
  • Studying continuous or periodic course review and development
  • Gaining insights into identifying needs – educator, student, family, community and industry perspective
  • Examining how to identify student and teacher resources
  • Understanding writing aims, competencies, assessment criteria, course notes and how to code courses
  • Learning about course components – assignments, brainstorming, case study, guest speakers, tutorials etc.
  • Exploring how to apply strategies for flexible delivery
  • Studying how to determine the appropriate level of study – quantitative and qualitative factors
  • Gaining insights into duration, descriptors, assessment, levels of training and lesson plans
  • Examining how to identify student needs and allow for different modes of study
  • Understanding how to structure, time, evaluate and improve a lesson
  • Learning about levels and the kinds of language including professional language
  • Exploring competence and skills and training objectives
  • Studying curriculum documentation and its structure and layout
  • Gaining insights into course materials including PBL projects and learning and teaching resources
  • Examining course material creation – developing and applying knowledge and review and reflection
  • Understanding the types of support materials – technical aids, documentation and visual elements
  • Learning how to write for distance education – problems and solutions
  • Exploring consciousness and how to improve clarity and write concisely
  • Studying the differences between guidelines, instructions and procedures
  • Gaining insights into the correspondence course structure
  • Examining audio materials and recorded presentations
  • Understanding digital technology and educational applications
  • Learning about multimedia and the internet
  • Exploring how to review and update courses
  • Studying change and inertia in education
  • Gaining insights into policies and procedures to support change
  • Examining how to review a course and change an established course

 

And more!

How Are Courses Developed?

If you are undertaking course writing training, it’s worth understanding how they are developed. Courses typically use written documents that describe, define, detail and outline the contents and direction of a specific course. The three types of documents that are commonly used to develop a course are curriculum documentation, course descriptions and study notes.

Curriculum Documentation

This is generally seen and used only by the staff of schools, such as teachers and administrators. In government accreditation systems, it is usually one of the first things to be written, and the process involves seeking and applying input from a number of designated experts. For example, a Curriculum Advisory Committee may set the framework for writing the documentation, and they will then meet with course writers periodically to review their progress.

However, they can be costly to write and maintain. Therefore, if they are not required for accreditation, it’s worth weighing up the benefits before deciding to allocate budgets and resources to this type of documentation.

Typically, these documents define what a course is and what its purpose could be, including as:

  • A reference point to be used by anyone writing study guides, course notes or even delivering practical sessions or lectures.
  • A document to be submitted for accreditation purposes.

Course Descriptions

Course descriptions or outlines describe the course in its entirety, or by breaking it down into its lessons and/or modules. This documentation is usually seen by both students and teachers, and mostly used in the pre-enrolment phrase for marketing or to assist with course selection. For less formal courses like hobby classes or adult education, they may act as a guide for teaching staff to follow as they deliver the course.

Study Notes

These are documents like handouts, textbooks, study guides, accompanying notes, worksheets or any other documentation that serves to:

  • Provide a source of information, or
  • Provide a guide or pathway for the student to follow.

 

How Are Courses Continually Updated?

The relationship between course development and time doesn’t just follow a process of developing a course, finishing its development, delivering it and well, that’s it! If you’ve decided to do some course writing training, you’ll be happy to know that courses are typically reviewed regularly, which keeps content fresh and relevant. This generally occurs in one of two ways:

Periodic Review

Here curriculum documentation (or the course outline if no curriculum document has been developed) is revised using a similar procedure to what was used for its original development. It is typically reviewed by a curriculum writer and a committee, and then adjustments are made and alterations approved. The time frame for this process is usually around five years.

 

Continuous Review

This process involves seeking regular input from teaching staff and/or students and often the relevant industry. Major changes to a course may not take place at any one point in time, rather, the documentation could be altered daily, weekly, monthly or even irregularly if need be. Pre-computers this approach would have been more problematic, however in today’s tech-savvy world, it is relatively easy to change course outlines, study notes and curriculum documents as often as required.

 

Types of Assessment

When studying course writing, you will become familiar with a range of assessment types. These include formative, summative and cumulative assessment, and they allow the evaluating and monitoring of a student’s progress along their learning path.

Formative assessment

Formative assessment determines whether there is a gap in a student’s learning at a particular point in time. It is heavily reliant on feedback, and can also involve adapting the learning path to facilitate any additional learning needs. In an educational context, assessment practises are adopted at the end of a unit, term, semester and/or year to determine what a student understands, knows and can do.

Summative assessment

This is the assessment of students where the focus is on the outcome of a learning program. The goal is to evaluate student learning at the end of the program by comparing it against a benchmark or standard. However, the word ‘end’ doesn’t necessarily mean the end of an entire course — assessments can be distributed throughout a course. In an educational context, they are weighted more heavily than formative assessments, and examples include a final project or end-of-term exams.

Cumulative assessment

Cumulative assessment involves ‘spaced’ testing to encourage students to study more frequently and distribute their learning over the length of a course. It also helps to minimise procrastination! In an educational context, it can give students more opportunity to effectively study what they last learnt before their final exams, rather than ‘cramming’ an entire term’s worth of information in at the last minute!

 

What is Student-centred Learning?

Student-centred learning refers to a wide variety of learning experiences, educational programs and instructional approaches that are intended to address the distinct learning needs, aspirations and interests of individual students. In terms of course writing, it can take a number of forms, including:

Problem-based learning (PBL)

This student-centred pedagogy revolves around students learning about a subject through solving an open-ended problem presented in ‘trigger’ material. It allows for the development of communication and knowledge acquisition and allows learners to develop skills that can be valuable to their future endeavours. 

Montessori Method

This educational method was developed by Italian physician, Maria Montessori, and it emphasises independent learning over conventional measures of achievement like tests and grades. In this era of digitisation, the internet has allowed for the development of self-paced e-learning methods that have provided the modern workforce with the opportunities to learn new skills when and how they want.

Self-Paced Learning

This is a specific learning method where the learner can control the amount of material they consume as well as the time they need to retain the knowledge that results. Most e-learning methods offer self-paced learning that is autonomous in nature and is able to capture and record individual’s interactions via the platform in which they learn.

 

Learn how to write and develop resources for course creation and facilitate educational programs with course writing training, such as our Certificate of Course Writing and Development.

 

Motivate and Inspire Others With Our Workplace Training Course!

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Do you have a passion for teaching but need to develop your training skills so you can improve your impact on the students, staff or employees you seek to inspire? Our Certificate of Workplace Training is ideal for managers, team leaders, skills teachers, supervisors, workplace trainers, course developers and business owners working in a variety of sectors.

The course will teach you how to deliver professional workplace training programs, develop lesson plans, and teach and undertake assessments. You will also learn how to develop and evaluate training materials for specific workplaces, prepare trainees to meet competency standards, use audio-visual equipment to deliver training, and promote training programs.

Learning Outcomes

Outcomes achieved by undertaking a workplace training course include:

  • Learning about communication channels
  • Exploring the skills of an effective communicator
  • Studying the responsibilities of a trainer to achieve effective communication
  • Gaining insights into the main approaches to helping to learn – psychodynamic, phenomenological, behavioural, cognitive-behavioural and transactional analysis
  • Understanding communication barriers
  • Learning about trainer responsibilities beyond communication
  • Exploring leadership concepts
  • Studying public speaking skills and how to write a speech to communicate a learning point
  • Gaining insights into how learning is influenced by the teacher, student and materials
  • Understanding learning terminology and teaching strategies
  • Learning about common teaching modes and teaching models
  • Exploring class size
  • Studying how to recognise the learners’ needs
  • Gaining insights into adult, children and adolescent learners
  • Understanding how to determine training requirements in the workplace
  • Learning about assessing needs, gathering information and how to use that information
  • Exploring how to commence training and arrange resources
  • Studying planning, administration and training support programs
  • Gaining insights into developing a lesson plan and determining lesson aims
  • Examining the structure of a lesson plan and how to write one
  • Understanding contingency planning
  • Learning about the assessment and evaluation of training programs
  • Exploring tests, examinations and assignments
  • Studying how to do an evaluation checklist
  • Gaining insights into training aids
  • Understanding how to use audio-visual equipment
  • Learning about visual materials – illustrations, whiteboards, charts etc.
  • Gaining an understanding of handouts
  • Studying one-to-one training
  • Gaining insights into leadership communication
  • Understanding tutorial sessions
  • Learning about conversation development
  • Exploring motivation, reinforcement, self-esteem and body language
  • Studying trainer relationship building
  • Gaining insights into motivation skills and techniques
  • Understanding motivational theories
  • Learning about competency and how to improve motivation
  • Exploring how to promote training
  • Studying persuasion and logical persuasion
  • Gaining insights into how to influence opponents
  • Understanding how to influence neutrals
  • Learning how to handle criticism
  • Exploring assessor training
  • Studying Recognition of Prior Learning
  • Gaining insights into assessor training
  • Understanding research and interviewing skills
  • Learning how to ask effective questions

And more!

 

What Does a Workplace Trainer Do?

If you’ve done a workplace training course, you’ve probably realised that a trainer’s job specifications may vary, and they can be given a range of different responsibilities. Some of these can include:

  • Teaching – Instructing, interpreting information and essentially, broadening trainees’ horizons.
  • Assessment – Assessing trainees’ progress in a standardised and unbiased way.
  • Planning  – Ensuring that programs are properly planned and prepared for, including developing content and syllabus.
  • Curriculum development – Writing or contributing to curriculum documents.
  • Trainee counselling – Being supportive of individual trainees’ needs and challenges.
  • Evaluation – Analysing changing trends, evaluating programs and altering them accordingly.
  • Accessibility – Keeping everyone involved and encouraging all trainees the opportunity for success.
  • Facilities – Arranging training venues, developing training resources, and providing and managing access to equipment and facilities.
  • Equipment – Operating, using and maintaining equipment like whiteboards, projectors, computers, printers and photocopiers.
  • Financial management – preparing and managing training budgets, setting fees, and preparing and submitting tenders.
  • Training staff – Arranging excursions and guest lecturers, interviewing and selecting training staff, and advising or instructing staff on their own professional development.

 

Characteristics of Great Trainers

“The mediocre teacher tells, the good teacher explains, the superior teacher demonstrates, and the great teacher inspires” – a phrase that’s more than relevant to teachers as well as those who have done a workplace training course. But what are some of the characteristics of educators that can inspire learners to perform at their best? 

  • The ability to convince learners they want to help them learn.
  • An enthusiasm for learning and a desire to teach.
  • The ability to organise the information that is to be taught.
  • An appreciation for good instructional design and fit-for-purpose content.
  • Patience, in order to wait for the learner to learn.
  • The capacity to listen and ask the right questions.
  • A ‘working’ knowledge of the subject being taught.
  • Empathy, in order to know how the student feels.
  • A focus on the learner’s development of skills.
  • The ability to work towards a strategic outcome and the desired ROI.
  • Tolerance and the ability to develop good personal relationships.
  • Rationality, to assist with decision-making and problem-solving.
  • Commitment and a desire to give your best when teaching.
  • Independence in terms of showing initiative.
  • The use of innovative equipment that can improve content, design and delivery options.
  • Awareness of learning trends and current educational research.
  • The ability to analyse and consistently improve their training methods.
  • A focus on their own lifelong learning which will inspire others.

 

The Theory of Helping

Teachers and those who have done a workplace training course will be knowledgeable about how to assist students or colleagues through the various learning stages. They will also be focused on developing approaches that are tailored to their individual personalities and learning styles. The main approaches to helping are:

  • Psychodynamic  – Emphasises early childhood experiences, unconscious causes of behaviour and early childhood experiences. This approach is generally focused more on content than on process.
  • Phenomenological  – Emphasises process more than content, in terms of assisting learners to explore their own thoughts, behaviour and feelings to bring about change.
  • Behavioural  – Emphasises the environmental consequences of behaviour. It also revolves around identifying and removing dysfunctional behaviours, and the adaption and reinforcement of new, desired behaviours.
  • Cognitive-behavioural  – Emphasises the teaching of new ways of thinking, which involves exploring differences between behaviours and values and behaviours.
  • Transactional analysis  – Emphasises the relationships and lifestyle of learners, and aims to integrate thoughts, feelings and actions, especially via communication.

What is Recognition of Prior Learning?

As part of our workplace training course, you will become familiar with Recognition of Prior Learning (RPL). This is a process that acknowledges the abilities and skills learners have built up with the previous study and/or work. It includes both formal and non-formal learning, volunteering, work experience, and paid and unpaid work.

For example, working on a farm could count towards qualifications in mechanics or agriculture. If you’ve worked in an office, it could help you gain business administration qualifications. And working as a volunteer with teenagers could fast-track you into youth work qualifications.

The Australian Qualification Framework (AQF) regulates education in Australia and supports the notion that all students are entitled to have their previous experience, skills and training recognised to enhance their progression into and between qualifications.

How are skills assessed?

Skills are assessed by an RPL assessor and against industry standards. A workplace visit may also be organised so that workers can demonstrate their abilities. The assessor will consider their knowledge and skills and match them against suitable, relevant qualifications.

Learners may also be asked to:

 

  • Perform jobs or tasks
  • Explain how they do those jobs
  • Provide samples of their work
  • Provide references or performance appraisals
  • Provide job descriptions

 

Create, deliver and promote workplace training courses that will harness your passion for teaching, and motivate and inspire those who are keen to learn with courses such as our Certificate of Workplace Training.

 

 

 

 

Horse Breeding Courses Ideal for Equine Professionals

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Horse breeding courses are essential for anyone who works with horses, whether as a professional breeder or a stable hand.

Surprisingly, knowledge of horse breeding is also important if you’re considering buying a horse. Why? Because knowledge of genetics and good conformation ensures you purchase wisely.

Our Certificate of Horse Breeding will deepen and strengthen your understanding of horse breeding, which will improve your career prospects in many areas of the equine industry.

There are many different reasons to breed horses, but the most significant is to improve vigour, strength, conformation or temperament.  These qualities will be dependent on the horse’s purpose, from showjumping to working on a farm.

This course is beneficial for stud owners, equine assistants, riding instructors, horse trimmer and stable hands. The knowledge gained will help you to build experience in the field of horse breeding and understand how to raise healthy horses.

Learning Outcomes

Outcomes achieved by undertaking horse breeding courses include:

  • An understanding of heritability is fundamental
  • The Work of Gregor Mendel
  • Chromosomes and Genetics in Breeding
  • Selecting the mare and the stallion
  • Quantitative and Qualitative Inheritance
  • The Reproductive Cycle of the Mare
  • Hormonal Control
  • Abnormal Oestrus
  • Breeding Fitness
  • General Broodmare Care
  • Nutrition and Feeding
  • Stallion Management for Reproduction
  • Training the young stallion
  • Steps in training a novice stallion onto the phantom
  • Common clinical problems with stallions
  • Artificial insemination
  • Handling Frozen Semen
  • Embryo transfer
  • When to breed
  • Detection of Oestrus
  • Gestation and Methods and Detecting Pregnancy
  • Methods of Diagnosis
  • Palpation
  • Pregnancy Tests
  • Ultrasound
  • Post-Natal Growth
  • Preparation of the foaling environment
  • Preparation for if things go wrong
  • The Physical Environment – Bedding
  • Common Bedding in the Foaling Environment
  • Stabling and safe environment for newborn foals
  • Lactation and suckling
  • Premature Foals
  • Orphan foals
  • Common health problems in newborn foals
  • Understanding Fertility in Mares
  • Understanding Fertility in Stallions
  • Handling and Management in Stallions

What is Good Conformation?

When assessing the conformation of a horse, there are many factors involved. The following is a list of some characteristics that make up good conformation, but there are many more you can discover in horse breeding courses.

Head: 

  • Lean and in proportion with the entire horse.
  • Jawbone should have space between its lower edge and the jugular allowing flexion.
  • The set of the head on the neck affects flexion (therefore control and balance) so look for a well-set head – for this consider the shoulder angle.  

Eyes: 

  • Clear and bright, not too large or too small. Widely set eyes give a broad range of vision.
  • It is a common belief that the expression of the eye is a sign of temperament.

Ears: 

  • A good size, flexible and forward-facing when pricked.

Muzzle:

  • Look for clean nostrils.

 Neck:

  • There should be a convex curve with a distinct arch from the poll to the withers
  • In the front withers, the neckline should be straight.
  • The neck muscle should disappear into the shoulder smoothly in the middle of the shoulder.
  • Look for clean lines of the neck and a balanced length in proportion with the rest of the horse.

Withers:

  • The highest part of the horse (height is determined from here).
  • Withers are defined clearly, providing a point for attachment of the shoulder and back muscles.   

Shoulder: 

  • Shoulders should have a definite slope forward from the withers to its point.
  • The top of the shoulder blades should be close together.

Chest: 

  • The chest should be of medium size and allow heart space.

Body: 

  • The body should be deep, allowing heart space, but additionally, it should allow plenty of room for the lungs at full volume.
  • Measurements from the withers to the lowest part of the girth should be the same measurement as from the girth to the ground.

Ribs: 

  • Eighteen ribs attached to vertebrae, interconnected by cartilage, should only by slightly curved to start with, then increasing in curvature to give a well-rounded appearance.

Back: 

  • Should be almost level, the length should be medium (neck length and back length are in proportion).

Loins: 

  • Located on either side of the spinal processes, they should be broad and well developed.

Quarters: 

  • The shape will vary; however, a fit horse will have well-developed and firm muscle tone.

Forelegs:

  • Should be straight from the top of the leg to the foot when viewed from the front.
  • When viewed from the side, the straight line should continue from the top of the leg to the front of the fetlock.

Hind legs:

  • When viewing from the side, there should be a straight line from the point of the buttock through the point of the hock and fetlock.

 

5 Popular Horse Breeds in Australia

In Australia, horse breeding is relatively new. However, there are a few standout breeds that are unique in looks, temperament and enthusiasm.

#1. Australian Draught Horse

The Australian Draught Horse is a result of crossbreeding four pure draught horse breeds that were brought to Australia. These breeds include Clydesdales, Percherons, Shires, and Suffolk Punch – and some light horse bloodlines that were introduced to improve genetics.

The requirement for heavy farm work has all but disappeared due to advances in technology, but these horses are still found on smaller farms as work-horses.

#2. Australian Riding Pony

The Australian Riding Pony was introduced in the 1970s and was greatly influenced by the British Riding Pony.  There are also Arabian and Thoroughbred bloodlines incorporated into the breed. Like other pony breeds, this pony is popular for children and makes an excellent competition horse – particularly in showjumping and dressage.

#3. Australian Stock Horse

Renowned for its calm and willing temperament, the Australian Stock Horse is a hardy breed also popular for its endurance and agility.

The Australian Stock Horse is a combination of Thoroughbred, Arabian, Barb and Spanish horse genetics. These horses are intelligent, tough, courageous, quick and agile, making them popular work and leisure breeds.

#4. Brumby

A free-roaming, wild breed that can be found throughout all of Australia, the Brumby is descended from escaped or lost horses dating back to the European settlement.

Breeds that have contributed to the Brumby’s make-up are the British Pony, Draught horses, Timor ponies, Thoroughbreds and Arabians.

#5. Coffin Bay Pony

The Coffin Bay Pony is descended from 60 Timor ponies which were brought into Australia (Coffin Bay) by English settlers. Often confused with the Brumby, as the breed is somewhat feral by nature, Coffin Bay ponies live in protected areas that are fenced off from the general population.

 

Gain an understanding of horse anatomy, good conformation, fertility, pregnancy and newborn care with horse breeding courses, such as our Certificate of Horse Breeding.

Let Your Career As a Birdkeeper Take Flight!

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Our Certificate of Birdkeeping is ideal for those who have birds as pets or are seeking to enter or expand their knowledge in the industry or even run their own business. This includes pet owners, traders and breeders; animal rescue and rehabilitation workers; and zoo and vet service workers.

The course will give you insights into bird breeds, bird housing and health, and how to train and breed birds. You will study the scope and nature of bird care, including hygiene, nutrition, grooming and stimulation equipment. You will also explore alternative roles in the bird industry, including showing, pigeon racing, falconry, avian tourism, and how to farm birds for feathers, eggs, meat and oils.

Learning Outcomes

Outcomes achieved by undertaking a birdkeeper course include:

  • Learning about the scope and nature of bird care
  • Exploring bird selection
  • Gaining an understanding of grooming and hygiene
  • Studying bird terminology
  • Gaining insights into bird types and breeds
  • Examining how to choose a bird
  • Understanding commonly kept birds
  • Learning how to house birds
  • Exploring aviaries
  • Studying the minimum requirements for keeping birds
  • Gaining insights into water and stimulation equipment
  • Examining feed and feeding
  • Understanding nutritional requirements
  • Learning about health management in birds
  • Exploring how to care for a sick bird
  • Studying safety in the home
  • Gaining insights into travelling with birds
  • Examining common ailments
  • Understanding how to catch and restrain birds
  • Learning about bird behaviour
  • Exploring bird training
  • Studying how to train birds
  • Gaining insights into breeding birds
  • Exploring bird reproduction
  • Understanding sexing and de-sexing in birds
  • Studying neo-natal care
  • Learning about bird welfare
  • Exploring working in the bird industry
  • Studying the pet trade and breeding
  • Gaining insights into showing
  • Examining pigeon racing
  • Understanding falconry
  • Learning about zoos and wildlife parks
  • Exploring avian tourism
  • Studying farming birds for meat, eggs, feathers and oils
  • Gaining insights into birds for pest control
  • Understanding how birds’ manure can be used for fertilising

 

And more!

Bird Body Language

 The practice of keeping birds as pets has been around for centuries, but we still don’t know everything there is to know about our featured friends. In terms of body language, pet birds exhibit different body language depending on their species, but some behaviour is common to most birds. If you’re looking to become a bird keeper, here are some of the more common ones you’ll soon discover:

  • Tail-flaring — When a bird fans its feathers out, they are usually excited. However, if they seem a little too excited, watch out, as they may be about to bite you!
  • Puffing up — If a bird puffs up their feathers, it’s usually a “leave me alone” signal, although sometimes a small amount of fluffing can mean they’re relaxed.
  • Dilated pupils — Dilated pupils, can be a sign of excitement, pleasure, nervousness or aggression. If they also ‘fan’ their tail, it generally means they are telling you to “back off”.
  • Crest-raising — If they are a crested bird, a raised crest usually indicates the bird is happy and excited to see you, whereas a flat crest indicates fear.
  • Preening — Birds only preen when they’re relaxed, and they do this to clean and groom their feathers.
  • Chattering — Soft chattering is often how birds amuse themselves and normally means they’re feeling safe and content.
  • Purring — Similar to a growling sound, if not accompanied by dilated pupils and their body is relaxed, purring normally means they are relaxed.
  • Tongue clicking — Rapid tongue clicking indicates pleasure and that they are feeling safe, content and probably want to be petted. It’s the best body language of all!
 

10 of Australia’s Quirkiest Birds

As a bird keeper, you’ll soon begin to realise that Australia is literally teeming with amazing birdlife. Many birds have also evolved amazing breeding, foraging and survival techniques. Like these quirky types …

#1 – Tooth-billed Bowerbird

Renowned for their passionate and elaborate dance moves, these birds are found in northern parts of Australia, as well in Indonesia and PNG. The males perform rituals to impress their potential mates while they are perched on areas they’ve decorated on the forest floor — which often resemble silver dance floors!

#2 – Superb Lyrebird

There are almost 5000 species of songbirds around the world. However, Australia’s very own Superb Lyrebird is said to be one of the special ones. What makes them unique is their syrinx (their equivalent of a human larynx), which allows them to produce a greater variety of sounds. This bird also has amazing mimicking talents, and other animals are often tricked into believing they are one of them!

#3 – Black-breasted Buzzard

Found in central Australia, these birds are recognised by the white stripes situated towards the tips of their wings which end in feathers that look a bit like fingers. Famous for being terrestrial hunters, they love eggs — mainly brolga and emu eggs — and they are one of the few birds in the world that use rocks as tools to crack them open!

#4 – Southern Cassowary

The male cassowary is a doting father who does all of the parenting after the female has laid her eggs on the forest floor. The males incubate the eggs for 50 days while keeping them warm, and after the chicks are born, they stay close to their father for up to a year. The female bird basically takes no responsibility at all!

#5 – Australasian Gannet

This large seabird is predominantly found off the Australian and New Zealand coastlines, and its special skill is an extraordinary diving technique. When foraging out at sea, they dive-bomb into the water at super-fast speeds from as high as 30 metres. This is possible due to the evolution of their enforced skull, which allows for the impact.

#6 – Western Whipbird

A shy bird with a loud and distinguishable song call, these birds are typically only found in a few small areas in Southern Australia such as the Eyre Peninsula. The slightest movement or sound will have them disappearing into thick vegetation, so sightings are rare and fleeting.

#7 – Satin Bowerbird

These birds are all about presentation. The male scrupulously decorates his love nest with a design and colour that their mate adores. They also gravitate towards the colour blue, so will adorn the nest with everything from feathers, berries and flowers to bottle caps, plastic and even clothes pegs!

#8 – Short-tailed Grasswren

Found in South Australia, these little birds have big personalities – although they’re hard to spot. Masters (and mistresses) of illusion, they are amazingly cryptic and more often heard than seen. They frequent scrubland and Spinifex habitats and are so well camouflaged by their plumage that sightings are incredibly rare.

#9 – Glossy Black Cockatoo

This species of cockatoo are quiet rather than raucous, and often only recognised by the clicking their beaks make as they shred Sheoak cones to extract the seeds — their sole food source. Unfortunately, these birds are now extinct on mainland Australia. However, they can be found on Kangaroo Island, off the coast of South Australia.

#10 – Tasmanian Native Hen

These prehistoric-looking birds are also no longer found on mainland Australia, and now only exist in Tasmania. Known locally as ‘turbo chooks’, they can reach speeds of up to 50 kilometres an hour! They’re also remarkably entertaining with their tail-flicking, gesturing and chorus-singing, which has been likened to the sound of a cross-cut saw!

 

Gain the knowledge and skills to care for a range of avian animals to work in the industry, start a new business or look after your own featured friends with a birdkeeper course, such as our Certificate of Birdkeeping.

 

 

How to Become a Zookeeper!

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Who doesn’t love a zoo! If you’ve always dreamed of working with wild animals, you’re probably wondering how to become a zookeeper. While qualifications aren’t required for an entry-level zookeeper position, a course in captive husbandry is favourable due to the competitive nature of the field.

There are many places you can find work as a zookeeper, from actual zoos (like Australia Zoo)to anywhere that animals live and are on display. You might find work in fauna sanctuaries, aquariums, safari parks and petting zoos.

Our Certificate of Zookeeping is her perfect introduction to further study in zoology if you’d like to pursue tertiary education. But, if you want to become a zookeeper, this professional development course is ideal for getting your foot in the door at a zoo.

In this online zookeeping course, you will learn about occupational health and safety in zoos, nutrition and feeding guidelines, health and reproduction of wild animals, behaviour management and enrichment, enclosure design and maintenance, human-animal interactions and more.

Learning Outcomes

Outcomes achieved by undertaking the Certificate of Zookeeping include:

  • Describe the nature and scope of zoos as a source of education and conservation.
  • Develop appropriate procedures for managing occupational health and safety in a zoo, to minimise risk to staff, animals and visitors.
  • Describe the nutritional requirements and feeding preferences of animals within zoos.
  • Determine health management measures required for a range of different captive zoo animals.
  • Describe the management of breeding in zoos.
  • Determine appropriate ways to manage a range of different wild animals in zoos.
  • Explain the procedures and techniques used to manage human-animal interactions in zoos.
  • Identify and describe the qualities of good enclosure design. Develop maintenance programs for different enclosures.

And more! 

4 Steps to Becoming a Zookeeper

  1. Physical Fitness

A zookeeper must meet physical fitness requirements, including a fitness test. A fitness test may include a beep test, exercises, grip and lower back strength and other measures of physical ability.

So, if you’re dreaming of captive animal management, it might be time to hit the gym!

 

  1. A Course in Captive Husbandry

Enrol in our Certificate of Zookeeping, which is a professional development course designed to provide the edge you’ll need to land an entry-level role in zookeeping.

 

  1. Join a Professional Group

If you’re serious about becoming a zookeeper, consider joining a professional development group like the International Society of Zoological Sciences. Or you can look for similar professional groups in your state or territory.

 

  1. Volunteer at a Local Zoo

If you’re looking to gain some practical experience to complement your theoretical study, why not volunteer? Zoos are busy places, so there’s a good chance you’ll be welcomed with open arms to learn the ropes.

 

Everyday Tasks & Duties of Zookeeper

Zookeepers are animal husbandry experts and have a responsibility to maintain the health and wellbeing of wild, captive animals. They are also essential to ensure the proper maintenance of these animals’ habitats.

The duties of a zookeeper include:

  • Feeding the animals
  • Dispensing medications
  • Cleaning and maintaining the animal’s habitat
  • Reporting unusual changes in behaviours to managers or veterinarians
  • Assisting with veterinary procedures, including minor operations.
  • Keeping detailed records for animal welfare
  • Educational programs delivered to the public
  • Promotion of conservation
  • Lectures and demonstrations with wild animals

 

Zookeeper Skills & Abilities  

Patience – never work with children or animals they say! Unless you’ve got a tonne of patience that is. Wild animals are not always on their best behaviour, so if you’d like to be a zookeeper, we hope patience is a virtue for you.

Attention-to-Detail – are you a noticer? You’ll need to be able to spot the subtle signs of illness or injury in the wild animals that are in your care.  You’ll also need to be exact when you measure out food and medications.

People Skills – People love to visit zoos, so you’ll need to be a people-person. You’re not just handling wild animals as a zookeeper, but often wild crowds too!

 

 

Popular Australia Zoo Animals

We love all of our wildlife at Australia Zoo – but some are a little bit more popular than others. These animals are always a big hit at the zoo!

Cheetah – These impressive carnivores are the fastest land animal on the planet!  They can reach speeds of up to 112 kilometres per hour in just three seconds

Saltwater Crocodile – The saltwater crocodile is the king of all 27 species of crocodilian. They grow to be the largest, most fierce and most misunderstood reptile on the planet!

Dingo – Standing between 52 and 60 centimetres tall and weighing on average between 12 and 24 kilograms, the dingo is very intelligent and resourceful, therefore adapting to live in a variety of environments.

Sumatran Elephants – Solely herbivores, the Sumatran elephants’ dexterous trunk and large molars enable them to gather, and process between five to ten per cent of its body weigh in vegetation per day, including grasses, leaves, fruit and bark.

Giraffe – There are one species and nine subspecies of giraffe, all of which are found throughout 15 African countries, roaming the open, grassy plains. They are very social creatures and are often spotted in groups – called towers. Known as the skyscrapers of the African savannah, a fully-grown male could grow to be almost six metres tall!

Red Kangaroo – Meet the big bosses of the kangaroo world, the epic, red kangaroo! With males standing up to 1.4 metres tall, red kangaroos are the largest of all macropod species! They can be easily distinguished from other species by their red and orange colouration, black and white patches on their cheeks and white tail tip.

Koala – Although these sleepy animals will nap for up to 20 hours each day, they are far from boring.  Did you know that koalas are not bears?  Although their scientific name translates to them being a “grey pouched bear”, they are in fact a marsupial!

Rhinoceros – These giant African natives are found throughout tropical and subtropical grasslands, savannahs and shrublands, and they primarily feed on grasses. Adult bulls can weigh up to 2,300 kilograms.

Inland Taipan – Introducing the most venomous snake in the world and epic predator of the Australian outback! Fierce snakes have, drop for drop, the most potent venom of any snake in the world. Crikey! A single bite from one of these great reptiles has enough venom to kill 100 full-grown men.

Bengal Tiger – Bengal tigers are native to India and Bangladesh and are often referred to as Indian tigers. They are large and extremely powerful, making them one of the most respected apex predators!

Zebra – The plains zebra is one of three zebra species found throughout the shrub and grasslands of Africa. They are closely related to horses and donkeys, yet, are easily distinguished with their distinctive black and white striped coat!

 

Learn how to be a zookeeper with a professional development course in captive animal husbandry. Enrol in our Certificate of Zookeeping today.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Be an Advocate For Youth With Our Child Protection Course

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Passionate about advocating for the rights of young people and their families? Our Certificate of Youth and Family Interventionwill prepare you for a career or promotion in the area of child protection and family intervention. This includes working as a Child Youth and Family Support Worker or a Case Manager in the area of Youth Early Intervention.

Our child protection course will give insights into working effectively with clients at risk to provide emotional support and improve their living circumstances. You will study how to undertake child risk assessments and implement multi-agency investigations, and learn how to effectively support and assist families to ensure that children and young people remain safe. You will also be able to identify when clients’ language, literacy and numeracy (LLN) are impeding their access to services, and how to adjust service delivery or refer to alternative services.

Learning Outcomes

Outcomes achieved by undertaking a child protection course include:

  • Learning how to work with those at risk of homelessness
  • Examining low income, safe housing and rental subsidies
  • Learning about low income
  • Exploring domestic violence, neglect, drug and alcohol abuse and mental illness
  • Understanding refugees and asylum seekers
  • Learning about employment services and case management
  • Understanding early intervention and mandatory reporting
  • Exploring confidentiality and advocacy
  • Studying how to develop and facilitate case management
  • Understanding how to plan and record case management meetings
  • Learning about client rights and individual and family needs
  • Exploring disability legislation
  • Studying rights of appeal and complex and high-risk situations
  • Gaining insights into case review and the elements of negotiation
  • Understanding how to undertake case management in child protection
  • Learning how to assess client needs and risks and develop an assessment plan
  • Exploring the intervention process and support and prevention strategies
  • Studying a client’s rights to appeal
  • Gaining insights into the nature of advocacy and support
  • Examining how to represent the client and negotiate client agreement
  • Understanding confidentiality and how to evaluate and achieve case plan goals
  • Learning how to work effectively in child protection
  • Exploring roles and responsibilities and quality of care
  • Studying investigations and substantiation
  • Gaining insights into jurisdiction and care and protection orders
  • Examining risk management
  • Understanding the indicators of child abuse and neglect
  • Learning about emergency situations
  • Exploring how to facilitate family intervention strategies
  • Studying community family needs and social and cultural perspectives
  • Gaining insights into family law framework
  • Understanding court and restraining orders
  • Learning about parental alcoholism and post-natal depression
  • Exploring urgent responses and crisis support and policies
  • Studying family support services and community service programs
  • Gaining insights into working with clients in social housing
  • Understanding community, public, social and transitional housing and Independent Living Units (ILUs)
  • Learning about housing for people with disabilities
  • Exploring the NFP affordable housing program and the Supported Housing Assistance Program (SHAP)

And more!

 

A Day in the Life of a Youth Support Worker

From career choices and family conflict to alcohol, drugs and relationships, youth support workers deal with a range of issues on a daily basis — including those you’ll learn about in our child protection course. They offer support and guidance to parents, families and carers, and may also facilitate programs that support the wider community.

An average day can be diverse, fast-paced and challenging, but it will also allow you to make a real difference in young people’s lives. Some of the day-to-day tasks a child and family support worker may undertake are:

Sessions with clients

One-on-one counselling sessions are an important way of understanding issues so an assessment can be made about a client’s safety, health and wellbeing. They may also involve working together to plan a strategy to overcome these. During these sessions, it’s important to offer empathy, minimise judgement, and keep anything discussed confidential so a client’s trust can be earned.

Community youth programs

Child and family support workers may be responsible for organising and facilitating community projects and programs that aim to build confidence and self-esteem. They can also help young people connect with their peers and other community groups. These programs may include things like outdoor camps, social outings, arts-based activities and sporting projects, and some may be held outside normal working hours.

Networking with others

Support workers may also work alongside other professionals like social workers, teachers and local authorities in order to advocate on a client’s behalf. Collaboration can help both young people and their families reach their full potential. You may also find yourself accompanying a client to appointments — including with medical professionals — or helping them to find a safe housing arrangement. 

Administration tasks

Just like in most other jobs, admin is an important part of a support worker’s role. This includes compiling reports, planning projects and events, sending emails, scheduling appointments, and sourcing funding for community programs. 

What is Child Abuse and Neglect?

When you study a child protection course, you will learn how to recognise child abuse and neglect. It’s also vital that if you suspect or believe it is taking place, you report it to Child Protection Services or the police.

The World Health Organization (WHO) defines child abuse and neglect as “All forms of physical and/or emotional ill-treatment, sexual abuse, neglect or negligent treatment or commercial or other exploitation, resulting in actual or potential harm to the child’s health, survival, development or dignity in the context of a relationship of responsibility, trust or power”.

According to the Australian Government’s Australian Institute of Family Studies, the subtypes of child abuse and neglect are:

  • physical abuse
  • emotional abuse
  • neglect
  • sexual abuse
  • exposure to family violence

 

Definitions of neglect and child abuse can also be both legal and medical/psychological. Legal definitions tend to be broad, while medical definitions usually provide a more detailed explanation.

However, the way legislation defines both of these matters, because laws have a direct influence on the outcomes of cases that are brought before a court, and can affect the decisions of judges and lawyers. They can also affect the attitudes and training of practitioners, the practices and policies of child protection agencies, and the acceptable standards of behaviour for the community.

Currently, the two legal systems set up to respond to and prevent child abuse and neglect in Australia are the civil legal system and the criminal legal system.

 

The Convention of the Rights of the Child (CRC)

Most children and young people in Australia grow up in healthy, safe and positive environments. However, some vulnerable groups continue to lack the adequate human rights protections and need to be advocated for. Just like adults, children have rights across the full spectrum of cultural, civil, political, economic and social rights — something you will clearly understand after undertaking a child protection course.

Some of the groups of children and young people particularly at risk include indigenous children, those in immigration detention, and children who have disabilities or are experiencing homelessness or mental health issues. Children and young people also have special rights because of their vulnerability — including the right to have a home, be cared for, be protected from exploitation, and the right to have a say in decisions that will affect them.

The United Nations General Assembly adopted the Convention on the Rights of the Child (CRC) in November 1989, and it came into force in September 1990. The four Guiding Principles of the CRC are:

  • Respect for the best interests of the child as a primary consideration.
  • The right to survival and development.
  • The right of all children to express their views freely on all matters affecting them.
  • The right of all children to enjoy all the rights of the CRC without discrimination of any kind.

The Australian Government reports to the United Nations Committee on the Rights of the Child every five years in terms of how children are faring in Australia and what it is doing to protect their rights. The UN Committee also consistently monitors how countries are meeting their obligations under the CRC and its Optional Protocols.

Ready to launch your new career or learn vital skills in the area of child protection and family support work? Make a difference in people’s lives with courses like our Certificate of Youth and Family Intervention.

Find your new direction today!

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