Purpose
Yoga Australia represents quality training and assessment. Only courses which meet Yoga Australia’s standards are granted Yoga Australia registration. These standards apply across all delivery modes whether face-to-face or external education.
The delivery method of yoga teaching training courses is changing due to a number of reasons. More schools are shifting towards delivery modes which include external education (e.g. online training) and less face-to-face contact hours. Courses that include external education components must provide the same quality training and assessment to those delivered in a face-to-face environment. Online learning uses technology as an interface between the learner and the trainer. This can be synchronous or asynchronous.
These Guidelines are designed to assist yoga training schools in ensuring that they are delivering a quality training course that aligns with Yoga Australia standards with relation to the following conditions of registration:
- Duration of Training
- Teaching Requirements
- Assessment Requirements
- Resources
Duration of Training
Your principal training course must be of at least 6 months duration. If your course is shorter than 6 months duration, you must provide a formal mentoring structure to enable your graduates to achieve a period of 6 months under supervision.
Teaching Requirements
Your training program must demonstrate that teacher trainees are given sufficient opportunity to learn the criteria outlined in the Yoga Australia Teacher Training Course Curriculum areas.
In the area of external (online/remote) education, where face- to-face contact hours are reduced or unavailable, engaging a local mentor is encouraged.
Assessment Requirements
Your assessment strategy must be comprehensive enough to demonstrate that the knowledge and skills acquired by the teacher trainees during their training meets the criteria outline in the Yoga Australia Teacher Training Course Curriculum Areas. In the area of external education, where face-to-face contact hours are significantly reduced, strategies must be in place to overcome any issues related specifically to external education assessment.
Note: Any practice that requires physical contact (e.g., physical adjustment) must be taught and assessed face-to- face and be included in the Scope of Practice.
Resources
Training and assessment must be suitably resourced. In the area of external education, where face-to-face contact hours are significantly reduced, strategies must be in place to ensure training and assessment is sufficiently resourced.
Failure to Progress
Training providers must provide teacher trainees clear parameters of success. Where a teacher trainee has not passed or completed assessment components the training provider must communicate in a plan for completion a deadline for any outstanding task to be completed by. If this deadline is not met, the training provider must advise the teacher trainee that they will not graduate.
The teacher trainer may determine that the trainee has demonstrated that exceptional circumstances exist. In this case, at the discretion of the training provider, a new, individual plan for completion will be agreed upon, with adjusted deadline as deemed suitable. The intent of the adjusted training trajectory is to assist the trainee in successfully completing the competencies within determined time requirements.
Teacher trainees are responsible for their own progress and must comply with the training providers assessment requirements and deadlines at the commencement of the course. Trainees are responsible for understanding the requirements of this policy and all other regulations, policies and procedures underpinning the teacher training course. Generally, trainees should maintain ongoing communication with their training provider when they believe exceptional circumstances have occurred.
Training Providers shall endeavour to contact and to support a trainee to whom the Failure to Progress policy applies. If a plan for completion is required, the training provider must ensure its development together with the trainee.
The training provider has the responsibility and authority to determine when a case is exceptional or to grant an extension on a case-by-case basis.
Duration of Training, Teaching Requirements and Resources Guidelines
To demonstrate that your teacher trainees are given sufficient opportunity to learn the criteria outlined in the Yoga Australia Teacher Training Course curriculum areas, develop a detailed training strategy.
Consider the following:
1. How are you going to train the teacher trainees?
How are you going to impart the knowledge and skills required to become a yoga teacher? Strategies could include:
• Face-to-face lectures.
• Class tutorials.
• Online videos of lectures.
• Online ‘live’ streaming of lectures. (Include what software you are planning to use e.g. Facebook live streaming, Skype, Google or Zoom).
• Providing course content online using a Learning Management System (LMS). (Include what software you are planning to use e.g. Moodle and/or Facebook Group).
2. What resources will you and the teacher trainees need?
How are you going to ensure the course is appropriately resourced? Resources could include:
• Physical resources: yoga equipment, computer, textbooks and workbooks.
• Online resources: internet, software and websites.
• Human resources: trainers and local mentor/teacher. Strategies could include:
• Informing teacher trainees of what they require prior to enrolment.
• Engaging a local mentor/teacher.
3. How are you going to offer individualised assistance and mentor the teacher trainees?
What can you do to ensure that teacher trainees are given one-on-one time in their training? Strategies could include:
• One-on-one mentoring with the lecturer. (Include how this will be undertaken e.g. face-to-face phone, Facetime, Skype and/or Google Zoom. Include the frequency this will be undertaken.)
• Provide regular email support from the lecturer.
•Arranging for a teacher trainee to work with a local mentor/ teacher who can supervise their learning, reporting back to the lecturer. (Please refer to Appendix 3. Yoga Australia Engaging a Local Mentor Guidelines for more information.)
4. How are you going to engage the teacher trainees with peers?
Are you going to set up any study groups so that the teacher trainees can participate and interact with other teacher trainees? Strategies could include:
• Online groups. (Include what software you are planning to use e.g. Moodle and/or Facebook Group)
• Pairing up teacher trainees for activities.
5. Barriers to training
Consider the barriers your students face in relation to training. Describe how you will overcome these barriers. Examples include:
• Is your course face-to-face or external education? What barriers are unique to your mode of delivery?
• What is your strategy for regularly connecting with your teacher trainee?
• What will you do if your teacher trainee has poor internet connection or computing skills?
• What is your strategy if your teacher trainee can’t find a local mentor?
Definitions
Synchronous learning. Synchronous learning refers to all types of learning in which learner(s) and instructor(s) are in the same place, at the same time, for learning to take place. This includes in-person classes, live online meetings when the whole class or smaller groups get together. In synchronous learning, students usually go through the learning path together, accompanied by their instructor who can provide support while students are completing tasks and activities. Most online teaching happens asynchronously, with synchronous learning usually taking place only if there is a specific need for live discussion or interaction, or as a strategy to build community among learners.
Asynchronous learning. Asynchronous learning is a student- centred teaching method widely used in online learning. Its basic premise is that learning can occur in different times and spaces particular to each learner, as opposed to synchronous learning at a same time and place with groups of learners and their teacher, or one learner and their teacher. In asynchronous learning, trainers usually set up a learning path, which students engage with at their own pace.
Face-to-face learning. F2F learning is when the students and the trainer are in the same physical space at the same time.
Online learning. Online learning uses technology as an interface between the learner and the trainer. This can be synchronous or asynchronous.
Learning. Learning is defined as the acquisition of conceptual knowledge, procedural skills, and professional attributes. Note that reading a book can be learning. There are many ways that humans learn, and many are not structured. Yoga Australia takes a broad view of learning, and that trainers and yoga teacher trainees will benefit from a variety of options to participate in learning to become a yoga professional.
Scope of Practice. Your scope of practice is the limit of your knowledge, skills and experience and consists of the activities you do in your professional role. As a yoga professional, you must be clear about your scope of practice to ensure you are practicing safely, lawfully, and effectively.
For example, if you have not had training and assessment for physical adjustments, then you cannot touch a participant for a manual adjustment.