KB6NU's Ham Radio Blog

KB6NU's Ham Radio Blog

Classes/Testing/Licensing

A Parent’s Guide, UPDATED

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UPDATE June 23, 2017

I first produced this brochure back in 2006. I’ve since updated it several times, and now there are two versions:

  • The first version is complete as is. Simply download it, print it out, fold it into a tri-fold brochure, and pass it out.
  • The second version has space for you to put contact information for your club. Download this version if you want to pass it out at your club events. There’s a space for you to either write in your club’s info or paste a sticker over that space.

This may be something that you want to pass out at any event, such as Field Day, where members of the public will be visiting.

 

A Parent’s Guide to Ham Radio

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 UPDATE 9/24/12: There are now  two versions of this brochure:

  • The first version I wrote for my own use at WA2HOM. It has contact information for people that want to know more about our activities at the Ann Arbor Hands-On Museum
  • The second version has space for you to put contact information for your club. Download this version if you want to pass it out at your club events.

Last week, I received an e-mail from a middle school teacher here in Ann Arbor. She had heard about SuitSat and wanted someone to come and talk to her class about it and about amateur radio in general. I did this Monday. Unfortunately, by Monday morning the signal from SuitSat was too weak for me to receive with the simple J-pole antenna I have, but I was able to show them pictures from the SuitSat website and play for them some of the recordings that hams made over the weekend.

Overall, I think that the talk was a great success, with several of the kids showing a lot of interest in amateur radio. I also got our club to agree to donate a copy of Now You’re Talking to the school, and I plan on keeping in touch with the teacher and to be available should any of them decide to go for a license.

I’ve also recently been talking to a guy in Monroe, MI, whose son just got his license and who has been trying to organize more activities for kids centering on amateur radio. Last night, we spoke on EchoLink, and he brought up the idea of a “parent’s manual.” That is, an article or brochure designed for parents of kids who might be interested in ham radio. The brochure would help give some guidance to parents whose kids are interested in the hobby, with the hope that it would help them be supportive of their kids.

Here is my first cut at an outline for such a brochure:

A Parent’s Guide to Amateur Radio

What is amateur (ham) radio?

How do you get into ham radio?
– Three different classes of licenses
– Take classes or study the book “Now You’re Talking.”
– Join a local club

How much does it cost?
– time
– money

What can kids do in ham radio?
– list the various activities

What do kids get out of ham radio?
– technical skills
– social skills
– public service

Conclusion

What do you think? I’d love to get your thoughts on this.

A New Year, A New General Class

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The 2006 version of my General Class license course started this week. It’s a much smaller class this year. Instead of the 28 that signed up last year, I have only four in the class. It’s too bad that I don’t have more, but with the smaller class I can help each student individually.

It also lets me hold the class in my basement, rather than a classroom somewhere. This makes it a lot easier. I don’t have to schlepp equipment to the classroom, and I can think up ways to demonstrate points on the fly.

For example, two years ago when I was teaching a class of five in my basement, I was explaining the concept of impedance. I drew the diagram of how resistance and reactance combine vectorially and did a sample calculation. Then, it hit me that I could use my antenna analyzer to measure the reactance of a coil, the resistance of a resistor, and then the impedance of the resistor/coil circuit.

First, I made the resistance and reactance measurements and calculated the reactance. Then, I actually measured the reactance. Voila! It turned out very close to the calculated value. I couldn’t have done that in a classroom because I wouldn’t have had the components, and at any rate, the students way in the back probably couldn’t see the demo, anyway.

I say that there are four guys in the class, but one of them has already passed the written test. In fact, he’s already passed the Extra Class written test. Why is he taking the class then? Well, he passed the test by memorizing the answers. So, he thought he’d take the class in order to really learn the material. Wow, does that put the pressure on me or what?

Here’s the outline I’m using for the class:

WEEK 1

  • Introduction
    • Why get a General Class ticket?
    • CW
      • Still a requirement, although will probably go away in 2006
      • CW programs
        • G4FON CW Trainer (www.g4fon.co.uk)
        • K7QO (http://puffin.tamucc.edu/k7qo/ or get a CD from Fists – www.fists.org)
    • Text: The ARRL General Class License Manual, ISBN 0-87259-920-5
  • Electrical Principles – Chapter 5
    • DC Circuits
      • Voltage (5-1)
      • Current (5-2)
      • Resistance (5-2)
      • Ohm’s Law (5-3)
      • Kirchoff’s Laws (5-4)
      • Resistors in Series and Parallel (5-7)
    • Power (5-8)
      • Decibels (5-10)

WEEK 2

  • AC Circuits
    • Alternating Current (5-13)
    • Reactance (5-17)
      • Capacitive Reactance
      • Inductive Reactance
      • Impedance (5-19)
    • Transformers (5-20)
  • Circuit Components – Chapter 6
    • Resistors (6-1)
    • Capacitors (6-3)
    • Inductors (6-7)
    • Transformers (6-9)
    • Diodes (6-10)
    • Transistors (6-13)

WEEK 3

  • Signals and Emissions – Chapter 8
    • Signal Quality (8-1)
    • Amplitude Modulation (8-2)
    • Single Sideband (8-5)
    • Frequency Modulation (8-9)
    • Phase Modulation (8-11)
    • Digital Modes (8-15)
  • Practical Circuits – Chapter 7
    • Power Supplies (7-1)
    • Filters (7-9)
    • SSB Transmitters (7-11)
    • SSB Receivers (7-12)

WEEK 4

  • Antennas and Feedlines – Chapter 9
    • Polarization (9-1)
    • Random Wire Antenna (9-2)
    • Vertical Antenna (9-2)
    • Half-Wavelength Dipole Antenna (9-5)
    • Directional Antennas (9-6)
    • Loop Antennas (9-12)
    • Feedlines (9-16)
    • Standing Wave Ratio (SWR) (9-19)
    • Impedance Matching (9-20)
  • Propagation – Chapter 3
    • Ionospheric Propagation (3-1)
    • Critical Frequency (3-4)
    • Maximum Usable Frequency (3-7)
    • Solar Activity (3-8)
    • Scatter Modes (3-13)

WEEK 5

  • Operating Procedure – Chapter 2
    • Telephony (2-1)
    • Operating Courtesy (2-2)
    • Emergency Communications (2-4)
    • Directional Antennas (2-9)
    • Station Records (2-10)
    • Digital Communications (2-13)
  • FCC Rules (Chapter 1)
    • Operating Privileges (1-1)
    • Transmitter Power Standards (1-6)
    • Good Amateur Practice (1-11)
    • Prohibited Transmissions (1-11)
    • RF Power Amplifiers (1-15)
    • Administering Amateur Exams (1-16)
    • Station Identification (1-19)

WEEK 6

  • Amateur Practice – Chapter 4
    • Test Equipment (4-1)
    • Testing Transmitter Performance (4-6)
    • SSB Power Measurement (4-9)
    • Station Accessories (4-12)
    • RFI (4-16)
    • Safety (4-20)
    • Mobile Operation (4-25)
  • RF Safety – Chapter 10
    • Safety Principles (10-2)
    • Safe Exposure Levels (10-5)
    • RF Exposure Rules (10-7)
    • Field Strength Measurements (10-17)

WEEK 7

  • Setting Up Your Station – Chapter 11
    • HF Equipment Features
    • Buying Used Equipment
    • Station Location
    • Practical Antennas
  • Exam Review

My idea is that it’s probably more interesting for people to jump right into the electronics, than to bore them with rules and regulations. I also think that they’ll be more successful as amateurs, and have more fun with amateur radio, if they have a good grasp of the electronics.

We’re off to a good start, I think, and the students seem motivated. I’m determined that all three will get their General Class licenses by the time this is all over.

Here’s One Way to Get Ham Radio Back Into Schools

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Here in Ann Arbor, we have a “progressive” or “alternative” high school. It’s called Community High, but because of its (and Ann Arbor’s, for that matter) hippy-dippy reputation, it’s often affectionately called “Commie High.”

One of our members–Ralph KB8ZOY–has a daughter who is starting there this semester. In the course of getting his daughter enrolled there, he found out about Community High’s Community Resource (CR) Program. Through this program, someone with expertise in an area can develop and teach a course that high school students in Ann Arbor–not just Community High students–can take for credit. According to the CR Program Guide, this allows students to:

  • learn things beyond the traditional curriculum,
  • learn things in a different way than through traditional courses,
  • explore potential career options,
  • explore a particular interest, and
  • perform a community service.

Well, if you ask me, a course in amateur radio qualifies on all these counts.

The trick, now, is to structure the course to meet the requirements of the program. For example, our Technician Class course consists of two hours of instruction one night a week for eight weeks. A CR course, on the other hand, must include at least 45 hours of activities. So, now our task is to embellish the basic Technician Class license course so that we can show them that we have planned for at least 45 hours of activities over an 18-week semester.

I don’t think that this is as difficult as it may seem at first sight. Some of the ideas I’ve come up with include:

  • at least eight hours of “lab” time, during which students will perform experiments demonstrating the electrical and electronic principles taught in the class,
  • building a small radio or antenna as a class project, or
  • performing x number of hours of community service by operating public service events or volunteering at the Red Cross.

The point of all this is that if our school system is offering something like this, perhaps yours is too. I believe we are going to plow ahead with this, and when we get our course plan completed, we’ll make it available to any and all that want to use it. Please if you do want it, and I’ll put you on my mailling list.

Teaching a Class This Fall? List it on the ARRL Website.

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Now, visitors to the ARRL website can search for classes being held in their area. By clicking on the “Classes” link under the “Find on this site” heading, potential amateurs can find classes being held within 25 miles or within 50 miles of their zip code.

The only problem is that, because this is such a new feature, there are few classes listed. So, if you’re teaching a class, I would encourage you to register it. To do so, go to the Class Management page and fill in the form there.

One catch is that you do have to be a registered volunteer instructor. That’s easy enough to do, though. Simply go to the Instructor Questionnaire page and copy the form there and e-mail it to the ARRL. In addition to being able to list your course, being a registered volunteer instructor is beneficial in other ways, such as getting discounts on ARRL publications.

Teaching Kids About Ham Radio

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To go along with the item on getting kids into ham radio, Guido AB0SI offers the following tips on teaching kids what they need to know to get their licenses. He says:

As an ex-middle school teacher, I would suggest the following:

  • For code, use the same technique you’d use to teach old f**ts adults, only more so. Practice sessions should be 20 minutes MAXIMUM. (15 minutes is better.)
  • Don’t push the student if she becomes disinterested. Of course, there is a fine line between encouraging and pushing.
  • Reward her efforts, not her success, and remember that a reward is not the same as a bribe. Encouragement, such as frequently saying, “Way to go…” is important because at some point the student will have trouble getting over some hurdle or other. It is important that she sees that her efforts are valued, not merely her success.
  • Because many of the questions on the test require memorization (allowed frequencies, emmission codes, etc), it’s important to know the student’s learning style. Some students do best hearing the information, some by reading it, many by one of the above plus writing it. Whatever works is the right way. Find out the student’s style her style and help her that way. By the way, many kids learn best when they use “muscle memory,” so it might be a good idea to get her a code oscilator. Better yet, let her use your rig’s side tone with your headphones.

These are great ideas. If we, as ham radio educators, can teach ourselves how to be more effective teachers, we’ll be better able to draw in and retain more kids.

No Ham Left Behind

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Here’s the text of an article I recently sent in to the ARRL for publication in QST’s Op-Ed section…

No Ham Left Behind

Dan Romanchik, KB6NU
Michigan Section Affiliated Club Coordinator

A recent item on QRZ.Com reported that the number of licensed radio amateurs on April 3, 2005 was 667,318, a net loss of 20,542 from the peak in April 2003. There are 28,869 Novices; 318,221 Technicians; 137, 093 Generals; 76,706 Advanceds; and 106,238 Amateur Extras.

Some of those that replied to this post used the decline in the number of licensees to predict the imminent death of amateur radio. While I’m not quite so alarmist as these guys, I do think the numbers point to a problem. The problem is not, however, the number of amateur radio licensees, but the number of active amateur radio operators.

While there have not been any scientific surveys, some have estimated that the number of licensees who are inactive-however you define that term-at between 25% and 50%. For whatever reason, these folks lost interest and are amateur radio operators in name only.

This is a shame, if you ask me. I think it is more important to have active, engaged amateurs than to have a large number of licensees. Inactive hams don’t show up for public service events or work CW or experiment with circuits. I would even argue that having a large number of inactive hams does more harm than good.

The question then is how to encourage amateur radio operators to be more active. The rules changes over the last ten to fifteen years have enabled many to obtain licenses, and I think overall that’s a good thing. But getting that first license is only a start, not an end in itself.

Let’s face it. If all an amateur knows is what the Technician Class license manual covers, all that he or she is really prepared to do is to buy an HT and talk on a repeater. That’s fun for a while, but the novelty quickly wears off. I’d bet that a very large percentage of Technician class licensees have simply abandoned amateur radio. I’d also bet that the majority of Novices are no longer active as well.

Note that more than half of all licensed amateurs are either Novices or Technicians. This means that more than half are still on the first rung of the amateur radio license ladder. Unfortunately, we really don’t have any programs for getting these hams involved. In effect, we’re leaving these hams behind.

If we want these folks to become active amateur radio operators-and I am going to assume that a more active amateur radio community is a good thing-we’re going to have to give them more help. It’s no small task to set up an HF amateur radio station; many things can go wrong, and without experienced help, it’s easy for new hams to give up in frustration.

One thing that I think the amateur radio community can do to help new hams is to develop more classes. I’m not talking about classes to teach people what they need to know to pass a test, but what they need to know to be successful amateur radio operators.

I’m talking about basic topics, such as how to solder, how to make voltage and current measurements, and how to make a dipole antenna. I think another very popular course would be how to choose an HF radio. This course would describe the terms manufacturers use on their spec sheets and help new hams (and undoubtedly some old ones) evaluate what’s on the market.

Ham radio instructors also need more support. Better materials for instructors will enable instructors to more easily set up and conduct training courses. Some training on how to teach would also go a long way.

I also think that the amateur radio community must provide better support for clubs. Clubs are where the action is. Good clubs bring hams into the hobby and turn them into active amateur radio operators. Bad clubs turn people away from amateur radio and foster bad stereotypes about amateur radio and amateur radio operators.

One way that the ARRL could help support clubs is by providing club officers with leadership training. For example, the Institute of Electrical and Electronic Engineers (IEEE) makes available leadership training for its section officers. Here in the Michigan Section, we hope to offer a program like this very shortly, and I think it will help our amateur radio club officers and strengthen their clubs.

We should take a page from George W. Bush and vow to “leave no ham behind.” Increasing the number of licensees does no good if they lose interest and abandon the service, and helping those currently licensed will do more for ham radio than simply making more hams.

General Class Ends; 8 or 9 Passed the Test

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Well, my General Class license course ended on Thursday as our club VEs came in and gave the test as the last session. Only eleven people showed up to take the test, and of those only eight or nine passed the written test. (When I left, two of those who had failed the first time were re-taking the test. One of them missed by only one question, so I think she had a good chance of passing the second time.)

I honestly thought all of them would pass the test. When the head VE asked me if I thought any of them would fail, I said, “Of course not. A good teacher has to have confidence in his students, after all.” Of course, I wasn’t completely sure that all of them would pass, but I thought they all had a good shot. Those who I thought would have trouble passing just didn’t even attempt the test at this session.

To be honest, I’m a bit disappointed at this outcome. I thought more people would come to take the test, and that more would pass. Perhaps next time, I’ll assign some homework to the students, and then discuss some of the questions in class. That would give me a better read on their progress. (It would also help me to get to know the students. One of the odd things is that I didn’t get to know the names of many of the students until the class was over. Since I didn’t assign any homework, I didn’t have any way to associate names with faces as I would in a for-credit class.)

I’ll take some of the blame. The classes were sometimes disorganized. The reason is that this year I decided to not use the suggested lesson plans in the ARRL Teachers Manual. Last year, I did use them, and it was even more disorganized, imho. I think the sequence of topics was pretty good this year, but I need to work a bit more on how much to cover in a single week.

dah di dah dit, dah dah di dah
Three people took the code test, and fortunately, all three passed. It seems a bit odd to me, but all three of them would have failed if the only way to pass the test had been by answering seven of the ten questions correctly. They all failed to do this. Instead, they all passed by copying at least 25 characters in a row correctly.

Three of the students passing the written test had already passed the code test, or were given credit for the code test for having been licensed as a Novice. That means that out of 26 students who started in January, six now have General Class licenses. That’s actually kind of disappointing.

I do think that most of the others are going to take the test at other VE sessions, so I’m sure that percentage will improve, but I’d hoped that more would be ready to go at this test session. I’m going to keep on them until they all get their tickets.

Too Busy to Blog

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I haven’t made an entry here for a while, and I’m sorry about that. The lack of entries here does not mean I haven’t been doing things. They’re just a lot of little things, none deserving of their own entry. Here’s what’s been going on.

  • Flame War! I got involved in a big debate on the Fists mailing list. Being a CW club, they periodically get into complaining that ham radio is going to go to hell when (note that I say “when” not “if”) the FCC eliminates the Morse code test requirement. I’m of the opinion that it’s a foregone conclusion–especially for the General class license–and all the complaining is just a waste of time. Filing petitions is as well. Now that the last World Radio Conference removed the requirement, and many countries have already eliminated the test, it’s only a matter of time here in the U.S.
       Anyway, I got into the argument, and because I’m in favor of removing the requirement, I, of course got flamed. One guy even started insulting me personally. The guy knew he had no logical arguments to make, so he started calling me names. I know better than to let ad hominem attacks distract me.
       What Fists should be doing is working on ways to encourage those currently licensed to become CW operators and improve their skills. The awards and contests they sponsor are great and a lot of fun, but Fists is going to have to be more proactive about getting licensees to be CW operators if they’re truly going to “preserve” Morse code.
  • General class. Another thing I’ve been doing is preparing to teach a General license class. To be honest, I’m going to have re-learn or learn a bunch of stuff before I can teach it properly. For example, I’m going to have to bone up on propagation theory in order to teach it to the students. I’m sure there are also a bunch of regulations that have changed since I last took a test.
       This class is going to include a code class. I know some of the guys who’ve signed up have no-code Tech licenses, and I’m determined to get them on CW. I’m going to be using the G4FON CW Trainer, which uses the Koch method to teach the code. It will be interesting to see how that goes. Last time I taught a code class was many moons ago, and I used the ARRL Code Book. I was actually successful in teaching two guys CW way back when.

I’ve been doing some other stuff, too. I’ll post more later.

Teaching a Ham Class?

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This has been sitting in my inbox for a couple of months now. Guess I better go check it out. The General class I’m teaching starts in less than two weeks.

New Resource for Instructors! (Nov 5, 2003)
Field and Educational Services is proud to announce our newest resource for active Volunteer Instructors: The Online Instructor Primer. This new compilation by Linda Mullally, KB1HSV is jam-packed with helpful tips, links, and tutorials sure to help instructors eager to try new ideas and approaches. The web primer is organized so that information can be located in an instant. Just use the handy index, and topics ranging from “Planning” “How to Get Volunteers to Teach” and “Take Advantage of Special Events” are just a key-click away. Quick-links give you full-access to many ARRL services — and becoming a Volunteer Instructor has never been made easier. Go ahead – read why being an Instructor can be so rewarding!

There’s a lot of good information on these pages, but not much about teaching code, unfortunately.

UPDATE 3/15/12: The Online Instructor Primer is no longer online. There are some instructor resources, though, on the Resources for License Instruction page of the ARRL website.