https://www.rac.ca/rac-online-
For immediate release:
In response to the Covid-19 crisis, Radio Amateurs of Canada is once again offering an online Amateur Radio course so that individuals can obtain their Amateur Radio Operator Certificate with Basic Qualification while continuing to practise social/physical distancing.
The course will once again be conducted with the assistance of the Annapolis Valley Amateur Radio Club (AVARC) of Nova Scotia.
This course prepares students for the Innovation, Science and Economic Development Canada (ISED) Basic Qualification Level Operator Certificate exam to operate on allocated Amateur Radio frequencies.
Course material pertaining to all topics covered in the course syllabus will be provided to all registered students. Students must have a copy of the Canadian Amateur Radio Basic Qualification Study Guide provided by Coax Publications. For more information please visit the RAC Study Guides webpage.
It is essential that all students have the necessary equipment and bandwidth capable of taking the course – at least a tablet or PC and a DSL broadband connection.
Schedule and Cost:
Date: The course will start on Thursday, August 20 and will finish onThursday, October 29.
Time: Classes will be held on Thursday evenings from 6 pm to 8:30 (1800 – 2030) Eastern Time (1900 – 2130 Atlantic Time) and Sunday afternoons 1 pm to 3:30 pm (1300 – 1530) Eastern Time (1400 – 1630 Atlantic Time).
Cost: The registration fee for the course is $50 plus GST/HST. The cost of the Basic Study Guide is extra and an order link will be provided upon completion of payment.
Instruction:
The course will use the GoToMeeting web-based service. Students will receive instructions on how to log on to the online sessions once they have registered for the course.
The course instructor is Al Penney, VO1NO. Al was first licensed in 1977 and has been active in many areas of Amateur Radio including contesting, DXing, VHF/UHF weak signal, satellites, emergency communications and DXpeditioning. He has served as the President of six different Amateur Radio clubs in both Canada and the United States and currently chairs the International Amateur Radio Union (IARU) Region 2 Band Planning Committee. Al has taught the Basic Qualification Amateur Radio Course since 1994.
Is the contact us portal working? I was trying to send a message regarding the course, but it keeps saying that it’s unavailable.
Thanks for letting us know. It was indeed broken but is working now.
I am registered for the Aug 20th Basic course, one question is do we have to pay for the GoToMeeting service or do we use an account the club as paid for
Hi Reg. You’ve probably received my e-mail indicating that you do not need a GTM account, but just in case, you do not need a GTM account! I need to get the final list of students confirmed with RAC, but we’ll have a practice session on Sunday afternoon. I’ll forward details later this week.
73
Al
VO1NO
Just to confirm but will this course administer the actual Basic Qualification exam online as well?
The exam can be done online, but it is not part of the course itself. At the end of the course you will be given a list of examiners – it will be up to you to contact one to schedule an exam.
73
Al
VO1NO
For Al, VO1NO:
My XYL (Shelley, K0MKL) commented this evening on the course chat that one study method is to take the sample exam 200 times. That’s because she did just that in 2010/2011 with the US Extra exam! The repetition is an effective learning tool.
Shelley is especially good at creating useful flash cards. Maybe she should generate a set and offer them for sale. ;>) (Just kidding)
I am very impressed with the way in which your course is being conducted, Congratulations and thanks!
For anyone interested in a set of study notes that correspond directly to the Basic exam 800 questions, and teach exactly the material you need to understand for the exam itself, take a look at my “Successful Guide to the Basic Exam” at http://www.ve3yt.com. Available as a 103 page pdf if you e-transfer $20 to vicd@uwaterloo.ca. (Email me first. I’ll even send you the introduction and section 1 on Regulations and Policies — ISED category 1 — if you want to try it before you buy. $10 of your payment goes to support amateur radio educational activities. 73 Vic VE3YT