ABMP Cornerstones

Born out of an innate desire to foundationally give back to the massage therapy profession, ABMP has launched an extensive instructor training resource that is free and accessible to all schools and massage educators through April 2023.

Introducing Cornerstones

The ABMP Instructor Development Program is a 25-CE-hour library of comprehensive online courses that provides knowledge and skills about fundamental and advanced concepts in instructional design and teaching methodology for instructors of modern massage classrooms.

Launched in April 2022, this program brings together all of ABMP's best school and instructor resources, along with new research on how students learn, as well as updated teaching theories and practices.

Following the groundwork laid out by the Entry-Level Analysis Project (ELAP), Cornerstones focuses on providing the knowledge and skill that is at the heart of all good teaching. And it walks educators step by step through curriculum development, planning, and implementation, all while sharing a variety of tools that have proven to benefit student success.

In a recent letter sharing the program's launch with massage and bodywork schools, ABMP President Les Sweeney wrote: "For your top instructors, Cornerstones may be a refresher on best practices. For less experienced teachers, Cornerstones is a life raft: a 25-hour intensive opportunity to learn the core skills needed to teach effectively. Don't just take my word for it: Kimberly Alexander of the Alliance for Massage Therapy Educators (AFMTE) and Commission on Massage Therapy Accreditation said, 'The topical content covered in Cornerstones correlates with much of the content delivered in the first two years of a collegiate bachelor of education program. AFMTE looks forward to extending the Cornerstones program into the classroom and assisting both seasoned and newer instructors in the application of the tenets of their practice of the art and science of teaching.'"

Cornerstones Program Details

The ABMP Instructor Development Program is available for free to anyone in the massage profession through April 2023. Learn more online.

Cornerstones Course Outline

Prerequisites

• Cornerstones 1: The Noble Heart of Teaching - Keynote
• Cornerstones 2: The Place to Start
• Cornerstones 3: Instructor Competencies - Best Practices for Educating Adult Learners

The Dynamics of Adult Learning

• Cornerstones 4: The Evolution of Adult Learning Theory
• Cornerstones 5: Understanding Adult Learners - Choosing Instructional Methods that Motivate

Core Instructional Design

• Cornerstones 6: Tools and Principles of Instructional Design

Learning Experiences

• Cornerstones 7: Creating Exceptional Learning Experiences - Lectures
• Cornerstones 8: Creating Exceptional Learning Experiences - Discussions
• Cornerstones 9: Creating Exceptional Learning Experiences - Demonstrations and Exchanges

Student Assessment

• Cornerstones 10: Formative Assessment
• Cornerstones 11: Summative Assessment in the Cognitive Domain
• Cornerstones 12: Summative Assessment in the Psychomotor Domain

Instructional Organization

• Cornerstones 13: Instructional Scaffolding - Supporting Your Students with Structure
• Cornerstones 14: Syllabus and Lesson Planning - Putting It All Together

Feedback and Evaluation

• Cornerstones 15: Core Principles of Developmental Feedback
• Cornerstones 16: Evaluating Instructional Quality

Classroom Management

• Cornerstones 17: Overcoming the Challenges of Modern Classroom Management - Exploring Student Behaviors
• Cornerstones 18: Overcoming the Challenges of Modern Classroom Management - Reducing Classroom Disruptions

Application and Implementation

• Cornerstones 19: Teaching Career Development - Igniting a Vision of the Future
• Cornerstones 20: Teaching Movement and Body Mechanics - Guiding the Body in Motion
• Cornerstones 21: Teaching Palpation Skills - Bringing the Mind Into Learners' Hands
• Cornerstones 22: Student Clinic as a Learning Experience
• Cornerstones 23: Adapting to the Digital Classroom - Building the Essential Skills of Modern Teaching
• Cornerstones 24: Weaving Emotional Intelligence Into Massage Therapy Curriculum