Implementing Animal-Assisted School Programs

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SC-166
Equipping teaching professionals to implement animal-assisted programs to support student wellbeing.

Learn how to incorporate safe and effective animal-assisted programs within the school environment to enhance student learning outcomes.

Registrations open mid-2025.

Special price of $170 for Victorian government schools - register using your @education.vic.gov.au email address.

$480.00

Key facts

Course category
Education, Wellbeing in Schools
Options

Please submit an enquiry to express an interest or to request further information.

Enquire now
Duration
10 hours, self-paced
Group Bookings
Enquire now
Prerequisite/s
There are no prerequisites for this short course
Certification
Certificate of Achievement

Why learn about Animal-Assisted Programs in Schools?

This unique course is designed for educators working in schools, who are seeking to learn about animal-assisted education programs.  

 

Why study a short course at La Trobe

Industry experience while you study

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Rising demand

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Powerful Collaborations

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Course content

This course covers the theoretical basis for working with animals in educational settings, considerations for setting up an animal-assisted education program in schools, and ways in which animals can work in schools to benefit educational and developmental outcomes for children, while maintaining animal welfare and human health and safety. Participants in this course will learn from experts about how to appropriately introduce animals into their own schools.

Topics covered will include:

  • Working with animals in school programs, including:
    • reading to dogs
    • other pedagogical/developmental outcomes
    • school counselling – animal-assisted therapy 
    • students with additional needs or disabilities
  • Theoretical background and evidence base
  • Animal welfare and human safety, including: 
    • theory and practice of animal welfare
    • human safety (allergies, cultural considerations)
  •  

The development of this course was funded by the Victorian Government. 

You’ll learn:

  • How to appropriately introduce animals into schools 
  • Ways in which animals can work in schools to benefit educational and developmental outcomes for children 
  • The theoretical background and evidence base for working with animals in schools 
  • How to protect all participants in the program – maintaining animal welfare and human health and safety

Your study experience

This 10-hour short course is self-paced and fully online, with optional synchronous sessions.

You will have 8 weeks to complete this course. 

At the conclusion, you will be required to complete a quiz to receive a Certificate of Achievement for 10 hours of Continuing Professional Development (CPD).  

Who you'll learn from

Dr Tiffani Howell

Tiffani has extensive experience in research on animal welfare, pet-owner relationships, and assistance dogs, including surveys, focus groups, and behavioural studies. She has over 80 peer-reviewed publications in international journals. She recently completed a four-year trial, funded by the Australian Department of Veterans’ Affairs, to understand the effectiveness of assistance dogs as an adjunct to treatment for veterans with post-traumatic stress disorder. 

Dr Vanessa Rohlf 

Vanessa is a Research Fellow in the School of Psychology & Public Health at La Trobe University. She has authored 18 peer reviewed journal articles and 8 commissioned industry reports. She has a PhD with a specialisation in psychology (human-animal interactions), Master in Counselling and Psychotherapy, and Bachelor of Arts with Honours in Psychology. She is a certified compassion fatigue therapist and educator and has additional qualifications in trauma informed care, psychological first aid and mental health first aid. She is a registered counsellor with the Psychotherapy and Counselling Federation of Australia.  

Professor Pauleen Bennett

Pauleen is a Professor in the Department of Psychology, Counselling and Therapy in the La Trobe University School of Psychology and Public Health. She is Australia’s leading expert in Anthrozoology – the study of human-animal interactions – and has contributed to over 150 peer reviewed journal articles on the topic. Prof Bennett is founder of the Anthrozoology Research Group, a multidisciplinary team with dog labs based at Bendigo and Bundoora campus.

Frequently Asked Questions

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Find out more about further education at La Trobe  View all FAQ

I would like information about a short course. Who can assist me?  

Email: LaTrobeProfessional@latrobe.edu.au 

Phone: 1300 135 045

I have paid the fee for a short course. When will I be able to access it?  

On completion of your registration, you'll be provided with an account on our Learning Management System (LMS) and the course material will be made available at the advertised date, or as outlined on your registration confirmation email.  For our on-demand courses, access will be immediate.

What payment options are there?

  • You may arrange to pay by BPAY or EFT
  • For group bookings, we encourage purchase orders.  Contact us for a quote, and upon receipt of your purchase order we can make the course available to you.
  • Unfortunately, we are not able to arrange instalment payments.

Contact us on LaTrobeProfessional@latrobe.edu.au for assistance. 

Can I arrange payment with a Purchase Order?

Yes, we accept Purchase Orders. Please email to LaTrobeProfessional@latrobe.edu.au and our La Trobe Professional team will provide you with payment details and access to your course. 

I am getting an error when I try to log into my LMS account. Can you help? 

  • The first thing to check is your order confirmation email - it will contain your Learning Management System (LMS) account and password.  Note that this account may not be the same as your staff, student or previous short course participant account. 
  • The second thing to check is that you're logging on as a short course participant and not as a student - choose 'Other Users' - select Short Course as your institution and use your account and password as provided.

If you need any assistance, contact us on LaTrobeProfessional@latrobe.edu.au. 

I want to enrol multiple staff in a short course. How do I go about this? 

Contact LaTrobeProfessional@latrobe.edu.au so that we can discuss options with you.  

What certification will I receive?

The type of certification depends on the assessment involved in the course. For example:

  • Microcredentials:  You will receive a digital credential that confirms the skills you’ve acquired, any assessments you’ve completed and potential pathways for credit or advanced standing towards a degree. 
  • Other assessed short courses:  This may include bridging programs or courses that prepare you for external certification from a professional body.  You might receive a certificate of achievement or a digital badge (a digital version of a certificate of achievement).
  • Non-assessed courses:  If a course doesn’t involve formal assessment, you’ll receive a certificate of attendance.
  • Single-subject enrolment: If you enrol in a single subject, you will receive an official transcript for that subject.

Please note that short courses or microcredentials are not formal qualifications under the Australian Qualifications Framework but may be eligible for consideration as advanced standing (credit) towards a degree.

What is a microcredential? 

Microcredentials are short courses that are assessed, carry academic credit, and to deliver specific skills or knowledge.  While they can be taken as standalone courses, many are designed to be combined or ‘stacked’ with other microcredentials to form the equivalent of a subject within a degree program.  Upon successful completion, you’ll earn a digital credential that outlines the skills and credit obtained, and any opportunities for stacking.

For La Trobe microcredentials, any advanced standing or stacking pathways are clearly expressed on the course page.   

What is advanced standing?

Advanced standing refers to credit for prior study or formal learning that can be credited towards a qualification, thereby reducing the number of subjects required to complete a course. For short courses or microcredentials (if these have been completed through recognised institutions or platforms and are deemed equivalent to La Trobe University subjects), credit may be granted either for specific La Trobe subjects or as unspecified credit towards elective requirements of a La Trobe course.

For La Trobe microcredentials, any advanced standing or stacking pathways are clearly expressed on the course page.   Upon successful completion of the course, you’ll receive a digital credential, which may be used when applying for credit for the relevant degree at La Trobe.

For more details, visit the University’s advanced standing web page.