Delivery and Assessment Strategy

Name of RTO / Australian College of Natural Medicine Pty Ltd (ACNM)trading asEndeavour College of Natural Health, Fitnation, FIAFitnation, College of Natural Beauty, Wellnation
Provider No #: 31489
Qualification Code and Name / SIS50213 –Diploma of Fitness
Course Level / Diploma – AQF Level 5
Course
Descriptor / This qualification provides the skills and knowledge for an individual to be competent in a range of activities and functions within the fitness industry, including working collaboratively with medical and allied health professionals in a broad range of settings, such as fitness facilities, aquatic facilities, community facilities and in open spaces.
Those with this level of competency will be expected to provide exercise training to individual clients with specific needs, on a one-on-one group basis, and may include older clients and children with chronic conditions.
Persons with this level of competency will have the ability to implement, evaluate and modify the exercise prescription provided my medical or allied health professionals for clients with specific conditions, within an agreed scope for progression as recommended by referring medical or allied health professionals.
Specialised exercise trainers will have the ability to monitor client progress and, in collaboration with medical or allied health professionals, utilise an evidence-based approach to deliver solutions by applying knowledge of physiology and anatomy and the pathology of specific medical conditions.
The completion of this course can provide employment opportunities such as:
  • Specialised Exercise Trainer.

Delivery Locations / The face-to-face course options will be delivered at ACNM campuses in:
  • Sydney
  • Melbourne
  • Brisbane

Training Package Pre-requisites / Entry into this course requires completion of the units listed below and have significant experience in the fitness industry.
SISFFIT415A / Work collaboratively with medical and allied health professionals
SISFFIT416A / Apply motivational psychology to provide guidance on exercise behaviour and change to meet health and fitness goals
SISFFIT417A / Undertake long term exercise programming
SISFFIT418A / Undertake appraisals of functional movement
SISFFIT419A / Apply exercise science principles to planning exercise
SISFFIT420A / Plan and deliver exercise programs to support desired body composition outcomes
SISFFIT421A / Plan and deliver personal training
BSBSMB401A / Establish legal and risk management requirements of small business
While the nature and duration of the individual’s vocational experience may vary according to the fitness business activity undertaken, evidence of the programming and delivery of a diverse range of fitness services to clients is required.
Training Package Eligibility Requirements / Not applicable.
Pathways into the qualification (if applicable) / No pathway is applicable.
This qualification will be completed as described in this Delivery and Assessment Strategy.
Pathways for the qualification / The trainer/assessor will advise students of further vocational pathways and articulation into higher levels of training during the delivery of this course.
Students are provided with advice on employment and training options throughout the delivery of the program. While ACNM may not offer all the qualifications indicated within the pathway, they identify relevant progression that may be attained:
  • HLT40307 - Certificate IV in Massage
  • HLT50307 – Diploma of Remedial Massage
  • 10454NAT – Diploma of Nutrition and Dietetics for Personal Trainers
  • Progression to higher education.
Students may pursue further qualifications through other training providers or obtain traineeships through employment.
If a qualification is only partly achieved, a Statement of Attainment is issued for successful achievement of single or multiple units of competency. At a later date, the individual can undertake further skills development or training and be assessed against additional competencies until they have achieved all of the competencies required for the full qualification.
Students can exit at any point and receive a Statement of Attainment.
The sport, fitness and recreation sector qualifications are flexible to meet a range of jobs, support current qualifications, and provide for a wide range of career pathways. They allow for various entry options, including direct entry at all qualification levels, and credit transfer between qualifications.
College Entry Requirements or Pre-requisites / ACNM is an open access institution and admission is granted through the normal tertiary process of direct entry. Prospective students may be admitted via direct application.
To support a successful study experience with the College, applicants are required to meet the following entry requirements:
  1. All applicants must attend a final admissions interview upon submission of their enrolment paper work. During the admissions process an applicant may be requested to complete the Language, Literacy and Numeracy test and additional online courses to support the applicants successful study journey.
  2. Applicants for whom English is not the primary languagemust have an academic IELTS score of 6.0 or as per pathway requirements. This level has been set to ensure the student will have the ability to successfully engage in their study. Refer to theEnglish Proficiency Policy for details. At the discretion of the College, prospective students may be required to undertake an assessment of English language at their own cost and achieve a result at least equivalent to:
  • IELTS 6.0 (overall score)
  • Pearson (PTE) Academic Score of 50 (overall score)
  • Paper based (PBT) TOEFL (Test of English as a Foreign Language) score of 523
  • Internet based (iBT) TOEFL score of 75.
  1. All applicants must meet minimum computer literacy standards as determined by the College and have unrestricted access to the internet and a personal email account.
  2. Domestic applicants aged under 18 years at the time of application must turn 18 in their first enrolled semester of study or within 6 months of acceptance into the course. Prospective students under the age of 18 must have their enrolment paper work witnessed by a parent or guardian. International students must be 18 years of age or older on arrival to Australia to be eligible for admission.
  3. It is the responsibility of all students admitted to College programs to acquire the required text books, delivery tools and resources required to fully participate on campus and/or in online subjects.
The College estimates the following Language, Literacy and Numeracy (LLN) levels in relation to this qualification will be:
  • Learning 5
  • Reading 5
  • Writing 4
  • Oral Communication 4
  • Numeracy4
As per the Training Package and the Australian Core Skills Framework.
Target Groups / To provide skills and knowledge for individuals wishing to further their career in the fitness industry. In particular, the qualification will be targeted at those wishing to work in collaboration with medical and allied health professionals, in rehabilitation and with clients diagnosed with specific medical conditions.
Target Groups include those fitness professionals wanting to become exercise specialists in:
  • Cardiorespiratory conditions
  • Metabolic conditions
  • Musculoskeletal conditions
  • Elderly clients with chronic conditions
  • Elderly clients with neurological impairment
  • Injury prevention

Transition / In compliance with RTO standards the College will ensure that students will receive current training products. The currency of qualifications and units of competency is monitored by via email notifications from:
  • Appropriate Skill Councils
  • Skills@ work
  • Training.gov.au
  • Any other relevant bodies i.e. Professional Associations
The College will transfer all currently enrolled students into a revised Training Package qualification within 12 months of its endorsement date published on the national register (training.gov.au), unless it would genuinely disadvantage students to do so. The College would then continue to deliver the superseded qualification for up to 18 months. New enrolments may be accepted into the superseded qualification for a period of 12 months. The National VET Manager and the Director of the respective VET pillar will be responsible for the transition of training products.
The transition process will be implemented as per the College’s Training Product Transition Policy and Procedure.
Licensing Rules / There is no direct link between this qualification and licensing, legislative and/or regulatory requirements. However, where required, unit/s of competency will specify relevant licensing, legislative, and/or regulatory requirements that impact on the unit.
Employability Skills / Employability skills are integral to workplace competency and, as such, must be considered in the design, customisation, contextualisation, delivery and assessment of all vocational education and training programs in an integrated and holistic way, as represented diagrammatically as follows:
The delivery of this coursewill reflect relevant industry work situations and will develop/enhance skills identified in the employability skills for this course. Employability skills are therefore embedded, as appropriate, within the units of competency and learning outcomes. Information on Employability Skills can be accessed from the Sports, Fitness and Recreation training package, SIS10 available from the training.gov.au website.
The application of Employability Skills is holistically assessed in the evidence gathering techniques.
Qualification Rules
(Required rules from the Training Package) / To attain theDiploma of Fitness, a total of thirteen (13) units of competency must be completed, comprising of nine (9) core units and four (4) elective units.
Core Units:
HLTAID006 / Apply advanced first aid
SISFFIT523A / Deliver prescribed exercise to clients with cardiorespiratory conditions
SISFFIT524A / Deliver prescribed exercise to clients with metabolic conditions
SISFFIT525A / Advise on injury prevention and management
SISFFIT526A / Deliver prescribed exercise to clients with musculoskeletal conditions
SISFFIT527A / Undertake health promotion activities to decrease risk factors and prevent chronic disease
SISFFIT528A / Apply research findings to exercise management strategies
SISXCCS404A / Address client needs
SISXIND405A / Conduct projects
Elective Units
SISXIND507A / Manage education initiatives
SISFFIT529A / Deliver prescribed exercise to older clients with a disability or neurological impairment
SISFFIT531A / Deliver prescribed exercise to older clients with chronic conditions
SISSSCO513 / Plan and implement high performance training and recovery programs
Duration & Schedule / The qualifications’ Volume of Learning is a minimum of 13 weeks, maximum of 12 months which lies within the AQFs Qualification Type Descriptor. Nominal hours, as per NCVER have also been considered to in the calculation.
The Volume of Learning consists of:
  • 288hours of directed learning
  • 300 hours of self directed learning
All assessment requirements must be completed in the duration in order to gain the qualification including completing ten real life client case studies during placement with a rehabilitation professional.
Training and assessment will be delivered in 1 trimester of 13 weeks per trimester for face-to-face full-time delivery. The Course Structure is attached (Appendix 1) for specific information regarding the delivery sequence of this qualification.
Delivery Period / This is to be confirmed with the student at time of enrolment as it is dependent upon the study mode selected by the prospective student and may include;
  • Full time,face-to-face
  • Online, full-time or part-time.
Date of commencement of delivery is 2015.
Alignment to the AQF / Graduates at this level will have specialised knowledge and skills for skilled/paraprofessional work and/or further learning.
Graduates at this level will have the technical and theoretical knowledge in a specific area or a broad field of work and learning.
Graduates at this level will have a broad range of cognitive, technical and communication skills to select and apply methods and technologies to:
  • Analyse information to complete a range of activities
  • Provide and transmit solutions to sometimes complex problems
  • Transmit information and skills to others
Graduates at this level will apply knowledge and skills to demonstrate autonomy, judgement and defined responsibility in known or changing contexts and within broad but established parameters.
Graduates in this qualification may (but not limited to):
  • Work with specific clients with specific health conditions
  • Work with individual clients or with groups of clients
  • Work with medical and allied health professionals
  • Undertake and evaluatehealth assessments
  • Address the needs of clients including modifying programs to meet the needs of clients
  • Deliver prescribed exercise to clients
  • Monitor clients progression in exercise programs
  • Plan programs including high performance training programs
  • Advise on injury prevention and management

Location & Nature of Facilities / The face-to-face coursewill be delivered atthe following ACMN campuses:
  • Sydney
  • Melbourne
  • Brisbane
All campuses has the following facilities:
  • Classroom facilities for workshop delivery, online delivery and practical demonstrations
  • Library resources
  • Student support and administration.
  • Access to gym facilities for practical application of theory.

Resource Requirements / ACNM has reviewed the equipment and facility requirements for this course and ensures that:
  • All staff involved in the delivery and assessment of this coursehave direct access to the current training package
  • All staff involved in delivering the training have access to facilitator, assessor and candidate support materials relative to their areas of delivery and assessment
  • All assessors have access to online and print copies of the assessment tools that are used in this course
  • ACNM has access to staff and training/assessment resources to meet the requirements of candidates with special needs and has an assessment approach that incorporates reasonable adjustment procedures
  • ACNM has an operational library on all campusesincluding hard copy resources, e-learning resources, journal access and e-text licenses, study guides, relevant audiotapes, CD/DVD’s
  • Suitable classroom facilities for all types of learning, delivery and assessment in a variety of modes where required
  • Suitable facilities for the development of simulated workplaces
  • Gym facilities enabling students to involve theoretical learning to applied practice in a range of clinical settings.
All training resources follow the principles of ethical practice in resource development.
Student Support / As part of the delivery of this course ACNM provides the following student support services:
  • A Student Services team which offers assistance in coping with the demands of being a student
  • Study Skills Workshops which teach or refresh skills needed to undertake study successfully
  • Language, Literacy and Numeracy assistance
  • Tutoring Assistance
  • Reasonable Adjustment to those students with a disability/difficulty
  • Educational Pathways including Recognised Prior Learning (RPL), Credit Transfer (CT) and Informal Articulation to those students who believe they are eligible
  • Confidential counselling services, Student Assistance Program (SAP), via an external organisation who can support students in all aspects of study life
  • The Access and Equity Program (A&E) that helps students with specific needs participate in education at the College
  • Library assistance to students with a disability in the areas of library catalogue, database and Internet training.
  • Student Handbooks and relevant study guides are supplied to all students as appropriate.

ReasonableAdjustment / The College shall take all reasonable steps, as per the Disability and Special Needs Policy to ensure that:
  • A prospective student with a disability, medical condition or special need is able to seek admission to or apply for enrolment
  • A student with a disability, medical condition or special need is able to participate in the courses provided, and use the facilities and services of the College
  • Where required, reasonable adjustments will be made to aid the students learning
The need that forms the basis of any adjustment to the course will be identified and appropriate strategies will be agreed between the student; the National Training Manager and/or Senior Trainer and Assessor; and an Access and Equity Program Officer. Any adjustments will be recorded in the student file, session plan and/or training plan (if applicable) and will not compromise the competency standard and conform to the industry competency standards as expressed in the Training Package
The adjustment approvals and the appropriate strategies will be determined according to the Disability and Special Needs Policy and the Access and Equity Program.
Adjustments may be related to:
  • the learning and training experience
  • resources
  • assessments

Delivery and Assessment Staff / To deliver the units of competency in this course the trainer/assessor is required to have the following vocational and assessment qualifications:
  • TAE40110 Certificate IV in Training and Assessment
  • Hold the relevant unit of competency they are delivering OR
  • Required vocational competencies or equivalent experience up and to the level being delivered.
  • Relevant and current industry experience including ongoing vocational exposure, development and experience to maintain currency of industry skills.
  • In excess of 3 years industry experience.
  • Have completed mapping to skills matrix.
  • All trainers/assessors with qualifications awarded overseas have formal evidence of equivalence from an approved Australian recognition authority.
Where a trainer/assessor is in the process of undertaking an upgraded qualification, all delivery and assessment activities are supervised by the training co-ordinator or TAE qualified specialist and recorded on the Supervision Template and Log.
A Staff Matrix is required to be completed by new trainer/assessors on employment and then regularly updated by continuing staff.
Some areas of VET currency will be provided by internal professional development provided by ACNM.
Current trainers/assessors for delivery of this qualification are listed in Appendix 2.
Delivery Arrangements & Assessment Methods / Delivery Arrangements: / This course will be delivered:
  • Face-to-face
  • Online
  • Within Units of Study
The program is delivered through a variety of methods that may include:
  • Face-to-face delivery in campus facilities
  • Online learning that will beavailable to students/trainees with use of training resources, completion of assessment activities, and for use outside of scheduled study periods.
  • Live and recorded webinars to assist in self-study course components.
  • A workplace observation of an appropriate allied health professional.
Self-paced learning allowingstudents to study at their own pace ensuring flexibility.
Unit of Study Outlines are provided to students prior to commencement of the unit providing details of delivery methods, contextualisation, delivery/learning hours, unit elements, core learning activities, supporting learning activities, assessment tasks and timing of assessment.