EXSC674 - Contemporary Practice in Strength and Conditioning

Year

Credit points

Campus offering

Prerequisites

Unit rationale, description and aim

To optimise athlete and/or team performance, strength and conditioning coaches working in high performance sport require advanced knowledge of theoretical concepts, and the practical skills to apply this knowledge. This unit develops this knowledge and skills for contemporary practice, with a focus on emerging research, innovation and practical application in areas such as warm up, altitude training, high-intensity interval training, and speed training. This focus on innovation and application also addresses evidence-based and ethical challenges faced by the practitioner. Students will also gain the practical skills required to deliver high quality training sessions.

Learning outcomes

To successfully complete this unit you will be able to demonstrate you have achieved the learning outcomes (LO) detailed in the below table.

Each outcome is informed by a number of graduate capabilities (GC) to ensure your work in this, and every unit, is part of a larger goal of graduating from ACU with the attributes of insight, empathy, imagination and impact.

Explore the graduate capabilities.

On successful completion of this unit, students should be able to:

LO1 - Communicate emerging research and practices in strength and conditioning and their application (GA4, GA10) 

LO2 - Use appropriate testing protocols in field and gym settings to assess the athlete, displaying appropriate standards of ethical and technical conduct (GA1, GA5, GA10) 

LO3 - Analyse, interpret and report the outcomes of athlete assessment protocols and their application (GA4, GA5, GA10) 

LO4 - Plan and deliver meaningful interventions for athletes, directed at enhancing performance and reducing the likelihood of injury or illness (GA1, GA4, GA5, GA10)

Graduate attributes

GA1 - demonstrate respect for the dignity of each individual and for human diversity 

GA4 - think critically and reflectively 

GA5 - demonstrate values, knowledge, skills and attitudes appropriate to the discipline and/or profession 

GA10 - utilise information and communication and other relevant technologies effectively.

Content

Topics include: 

• Environmental training interventions and simulations   
• Warm-up & cool-down  
• Concurrent training 
• Speed and agility training 
• Instability training 
• Complex training 
• Other contemporary and/or emerging practices in strength and conditioning  

Learning and teaching strategy and rationale

Learning and teaching strategies include active learning, individual and group activities, cooperative learning, web-based learning, and reflective/critical thinking activities, delivered online over a semester. Comprehension will be supported through information from experts with experience in high performance environments. This range of strategies will provide students with appropriate access to required knowledge and understanding of unit content, and opportunities for development of knowledge, understanding and their application in the delivery of strength and conditioning programs. These strategies will allow students to meet the aims, learning outcomes and graduate attributes of the unit. Learning and teaching strategies will reflect respect for the individual as an independent learner. Students will be expected to take responsibility for their learning and to participate actively within group activities. 

Assessment strategy and rationale

In order to best enable students to achieve unit learning outcomes and develop graduate attributes, standards-based assessment is utilised, consistent with University assessment requirements. A range of assessment strategies are used including: critical appraisal and application of literature; written summaries to assess comprehension and reflection on unit content; and oral presentation to assess ability to search and synthesise the literature and to apply the evidence in a high-performance environment. In order to pass this unit, you are required to submit all assessment tasks and achieve an overall mark of 50% or greater. The assessment tasks for this unit are designed for you to demonstrate your achievement of each learning outcome.  

Overview of assessments

Representative texts and references

Australian Institute of Sport, Tanner R and Gore C (2013) Physiological tests for elite athletes (2nd ed.). Champaign: Human Kinetics. 

Bompa T and Haff G (2009) Periodization: Theory and Methodology of Training (5th ed.). 

 Champaign: Human Kinetics. 

Cardinale M, Newton R and Nosaka K (2010) Strength and Conditioning: Biological Principles 

  and Practical Applications. Hoboken: Wiley-Blackwell. 

Coutts, A. J. and S. Cormack (2014). Monitoring the training response. In Joyce D & Lewindon D, High-Performance Training For Sports. Champaign IL: Human Kinetics: pp 71-84. 

Cormack, S. and A. Coutts (2016). Monitoring Training Load. In Joyce D & Lewindon D, Sports Injury Prevention and Rehabilitation. London: Routledge. pp 380-391. 

McGuigan, M. R. and S. J. Cormack (2011). Biochemical Monitoring in Strength and Conditioning. In Cardinale M, Newton R & Nosaka K. Strength and Conditioning: Biological Principles and Practical Applications. West Sussex: John Wiley & Sons: pp 305-311. 

Visual Coaching Pro software (details supplied by LIC)