Climbing Wall Instructor Assessment
Course Overview
This course assesses candidates in the skills required to supervise climbers on purpose built artificial climbing walls and boulders. It is ideal for people who work at climbing walls or at venues with permanent or mobile climbing towers.
Programme
09.15 - 17.30
The assessment includes a written paper and a range of practical and discussion-based sessions including the following:
* Background info
* Technical
* Equipment
* Movement skills
* Legal
* Responsibilities
* Teaching and learning
* Belaying
What you will Learn
Climbing Wall Instructors should be competent in the following key areas, all of which will be assessed, to a greater or lesser extent, during this course.
• Technical Competence (including equipment, belaying, personal skills and background knowledge)
• Management and Decision Making (including planning, managing participants, decision making, knowledge and demonstration of techniques and managing other staff)
• Teaching and Learning Skills
• The Climbing Environment (including access, etiquette and ethics)
Detailed information on each of the above topics can be found in the Climbing Wall Instructor handbook and the onus is on you to be competent in all of them by the time you come to assessment - use the Skills Checklist to help with this.
Over the period of the assessment candidates will be assessed and benchmarked against the Climbing Wall Instructor assessment criteria.
This includes areas such as leadership, decision making, people management skills, safety and risk management, planning, understanding of the environment and personal skills in the appropriate environment.
An assessment provides candidates with the opportunity to receive detailed feedback from very experienced tutors on their approach to leadership. The assessment process should be viewed as a valuable development opportunity as it aims to enrich your leadership skills by providing enhanced knowledge, understanding, and ultimately greater enjoyment for you as a leader.
Is this course for me?
Before you attend a Climbing Wall Instructor assessment, make sure you have done the following:
* You must be at least 18 years old.
* You must be a current member of a mountaineering council, MI, BMC, MCoS
* You must have attended a Climbing Wall Instructor (or Climbing Wall Award) Training course or have been granted exemption from training.
* You must be familiar with the syllabus.
* You must have logged a minimum of 30 personal climbing visits to at least three different climbing walls.
* You must have led a minimum of 40 climbs on climbing walls.
* You must be confident at leading routes at Fr 4.
* You must have assisted in the supervision of at least 15 instructed sessions on at least two different walls including a large public facility in a variety of contexts. At least five of these sessions must have personal reflective comments recorded on DLOG. (For guidance see question 3 in the DLOG section on this page.)
* You must have physically attended and completed (i.e. not online) a first aid course which involved at least one full day or eight hours of instruction and included an element of assessment.
What Equipment do I need to bring?
You should bring the following personal equipment with you:
* Warm layers
* Harness and personal climbing equipment*
* Rock shoes*
* Water bottle
* Small first aid kit
* Personal medication
* Notebook and pencil
* Toiletries & towel (non-residential)
Tollymore National Outdoor Centre stores with the support of many of the leading outdoor equipment manufacturers are stocked with the best and most up to date equipment.
Participants are encouraged to bring any of their own personal equipment, so they get the opportunity to be coached using the equipment they are most familiar with.
Items marked * can be borrowed from TNOC stores
Please note, by enrolling into any of our courses you are accepting our Booking Terms and Conditions, please read them carefully before you make a payment.
