Pool Lifeguard e-learning program wins gold

The Royal Life Saving Society’s e-learning platform for its Pool Lifeguard course has taken out the Gold award for Best Blended Learning Model at the 2019 LearnX Live Awards. The LearnX Foundation supports and promotes advancements in learning technologies and workforce development, with awards held annually to recognise the industry’s best innovators.

The Best Blended Learning Model award recognises the impact of a learning project that uses two or more delivery methods. The Royal Life Saving Pool Lifeguard e-learning program, which was first launched in Western Australia in January 2018, complements traditional course materials and face-to-face training with a series of interactive modules. The modules test students’ knowledge-based situational learning and their ability to perform rapid decision making in a timed component.

The objective of the program was to provide engaging content that appeals to a younger generation of learners, and to prepare those with no prior knowledge of lifeguarding. Working together with Savv-e, a digital learning agency, Royal Life Saving’s State and Territory Member Organisations (STMOs) contributed to the development of the online learning program as it came to life. 

Built using Articulate Storyline, the program features interactive content, gamification, animations and video content. It engages learners in a variety of ways, prompting critical thinking and practical application of knowledge. The content includes topics such as aquatic supervision, risk management, communication and rescue, and ensures new lifeguards are highly skilled and work ready.

The Royal Life Saving STMOs, including Royal Life Saving WA, helped to build and design the course content, with the program to be used as part of their pool lifeguard training programs. The program has been running successfully in WA and the ACT, with around 1,000 students successfully completing the training to date. Royal Life Saving Australia hopes to roll out the program to the other states and territories during 2019.