David Sumner K1ZZ, Secretary ARRL

While it is possible to earn an Amateur Radio license by studying on your own, most people take a course that involves attending classes taught by one or more instructors. This is a tried-and-true formula that works for thousands of new licensees every year. As outlined in The ARRL Instructor's Manual the typical Technician course consists of eight two-hour classes, one night a week, with a ninth session for review. This is a tried-and-true formula that works for thousands of new licensees every year.

But it doesn't work for everyone. Many people have a difficult time committing to a schedule occupying that many evenings, that far in advance. The lives of prospective

radio amateurs are as busy as anyone's; other obligations have a way of cropping up, interfering with even the most motivated and dedicated students.

For that reason, in recent year the alternative of a weekend course has grown in popularity. It is possible to cover the same 16 hours of instruction in an intensive two-day period, and if the exam is given right away there is no need for a review session. This leads some to feel that the courses are simply "cram sessions," although the instructors and many students would dispute that characterization. Weekend instructors generally make sure that their students receive the study material well in advance and strongly encourage advance preparation, including the completion and submission of a practice exam so the instructors will know what subject areas need the most emphasis.

Can the instructions be boiled down to one day? Some radio clubs and private instructors claim to have done so successfully. Skeptics wonder how this is possible without "teaching to the test," although examinees do not know in advance which 35 out of several hundred question in the question pool will appear on their exam. Others wonder whether, even if possible, its a good idea to accelerate students from zero to Technician in a single day.

As we said at the onset, it isnt necessary to take a course  either in person or by any other means, such as on line  to earn an Amateur Radio license. So in that sense the argument over whether one day is sufficient is academic. Administering fair and honest exams is the responsibility of the Volunteer Examiners and VE Coordinators, including ARRL/VEC; deciding how to prepare is the responsibility of the examinee. Whether you study entirely on your own, with a couple of friends or family members, or in a formal course  over a day, a weekend, or a couple of months  eventually will come down to answering 26 out of 35 multiple-choice questions correctly. Get 26 (or 35, or any number in between) right and your Technician license will be issued in a few days; 25 right and all you get is the chance to try again.

The success of an Amateur Radio licensing course is not measured by the number of hours spent in a classroom. However, neither is it measured simply by how many students pass the exam. Do the new licensees get on the air? Are they made to feel welcome? Are they invited to join the local club? Are they given opportunities to learn more than the bare essentials to pass the test? Are they exposed to the wide range of Amateur Radio activities that arent mentioned, or are described only briefly, in the guides? Are they offered the chance to contribute to the local Amateur Radio community? The answers to these questions determining whether Amateur Radio will enrich the lives of our newcomers as it has enriched ours and whether, in turn, they will become an asset to our global community, or whether instead they will become another inactive statistic.

In other words, no instructor should feel that the job is done when the license is issued. However, laying the responsibility for all of the necessary follow-up at the feet of an instructor is hardly fair, and is not our intent. We all share an obligation to make new licensees feel that by joining our ranks, they did the right thing. It can be as simple as giving a friendly response to the unfamiliar, tentative voice sporting a brand new call sign that shows up on the repeater. It can grow from that into a new friendship, into someone with whom to share our enthusiasm and from whom we are bound to learn something in exchange.

For our part, the ARRL has placed increased emphasis on mentoring and is encouraging our affiliated clubs to make a conscious effort to reach out to new and prospective members with offers of assistance. Theres a one-stop clearinghouse for useful information about mentoring at | www.arrl.org/FandES/field/club/mentor/ |.

It is certainly true that Amateur Radio cannot be learned in a day or a weekend. It is equally true that every journey begins with a single step. Each of us owes an enormous debt to those who encouraged us to take our first step as well as to those who helped us along our subsequent paths.

Now it is our turn.

I sent Dave the following e-mail:

Thank you so much for your editorial, "Licensing Courses: How Long?" in QST, February 2005. It was in my opinion a very well balanced look at quite a touchy topic, and I do sincerely hope it represents the broad opinion of the ARRL.

He replied:

Thanks, John. I was encouraged to write the editorial by several ARRL Board members. Not to denigrate the licensing process, but I think it's safe to say that what's made all of us good hams is what we've learned after earning the license, not before.

73,

Dave Sumner, K1ZZ