[Ccarc] ARRL EMCOMM FAQ's

[Tom Murray]

Here are FAQ's regarding ARRL emergency communications courses.

Tom Murray  KB9WSL

Frequently Asked Questions
About ARRL Certification - Continuing Education (C-CE) Activities


Frequently Asked Questions
I'm a newcomer to Amateur Radio and wish to become involved in local 
emergency communications. Can you explain the benefits of taking the Level I 
-- Introduction to Amateur Radio Emergency Communication Course (ARECC) for 
me?

This course will help you become a better emergency communicator. You will 
learn to work effectively with the public and with volunteer agencies during 
a communications emergency.

One of the basic tenets of Amateur Radio is to provide a pool of experienced 
communicators during emergencies. All Amateur Radio operators are encouraged 
to become certified in emergency communication, and this course is suitable 
for newly licensed operators. Those who have been actively operating Amateur 
Radio for perhaps a year or more will find much of the terminology and many 
of the practices more familiar and easier to assimilate. This should not 
discourage the newly licensed individual, but should merely inform you of 
what to expect.

Emergency situations require the precise transmission of information. For 
this reason, a great part of this course deals with the practice of sending 
and receiving messages, generally referred to as "handling traffic." 
Experienced traffic handlers compose a rather small percentage of licensed 
amateurs. The AREC Level 1 Course activities will help you develop the 
skills necessary to compose, transmit, and receive formal messages. Although 
the syllabus is complete for your needs, there are other reference materials 
available that you may find to be helpful in mastering these skills.

One such resource is the chapter on traffic handling found in the ARRL 
Operating Manual (#7938). (Even a very old copy will do.) Another excellent 
resource as a companion to this course would be the very affordable ARRL 
ARES Field Resources Manual (#5439). It contains many of the traffic 
handling tips and bits of information in handy chart form.

At some point, you have to actually jump in and DO those things that you 
study. This is especially true of traffic handling as taught in this course. 
It is assumed that since you took the time and effort to obtain an amateur 
license, you must be actually operating on the air. Some traffic nets meet 
nightly on 2-meter or 70 cm nets, and these are a primary source of both 
delivering and soliciting traffic messages into the National Traffic System 
(NTS).

There are far more opportunities to monitor formal traffic being passed, and 
gain the necessary experience, if you have the ability to operate (or at 
least monitor) the HF bands. This means that even without HF capability, you 
can complete the activities successfully. Undoubtedly, you will find the 
course much easier if you can monitor HF nets. This could be done on a 
general coverage receiver and a simple wire antenna. Some amateurs have 
phone patch capability on their HF rigs and could allow you to monitor a 
traffic net by simply placing a phone call and throwing a switch. In extreme 
cases, some students may not actually have any traffic net in which they can 
participate locally. In such cases, perhaps a fellow local ham could pass 
and receive traffic with you on 2-meters locally. For the sake of practice, 
traffic can even be sent over the telephone, if all else fails. Your mentor 
can be helpful in analyzing messages you submit, and will help you to 
correct any simple errors you may encounter.

The ARECC addresses other practices and modes with which you may have little 
or no experience. These may include packet radio or other digital modes such 
as PSK-31 or APRS. Don't worry! The syllabus will guide you in the right 
directions to understand how these are usefully incorporated into emergency 
communications.

Hopefully, in a few weeks, you will find that you have expanded your 
horizons in Amateur Radio to include serving the public and community at a 
new higher level by virtue of your skill and resources via Amateur Radio. In 
the process, it is likely that you will become more comfortable in your 
day-to-day communications and may discover a new facet of Amateur Radio to 
try.

When will the next ARECC on-line class open?

You can register for any of our courses at any time. Any changes to this 
schedule will be publicized on the ARRL Web site and in the ARRL Letter.

Watch the ARRL Web Course Listing and the Registration Form.

Do any of the public service agencies recognize this training?

Yes. The Salvation Army Team Emergency Response Network (SATERN) logo is 
already on the ARECC Certificates. We hope to display others soon.

I recently completed the EC-001 on-line course and wish to offer it locally 
to other hams in my area. What is my next step?

First, read the Hybrid EmComm Class FAQ. Also review the CCE Classroom and 
Exam Info Web Page.

How much time should I allow to teach the ARECC in a live classroom setting?

Although this is a new class and no real statistics are yet available, we 
believe a time period of 20 to 25 hours would allow adequate time to cover 
all the material. My personal preference for teaching classes is Saturday 
mornings, 9 AM to 1 PM. This serves several purposes: permits 
weekday-workers to take the class and sleep in until 8, ends at lunch time 
eliminating the need to serve food, allows participants to spend the 
majority of the weekend with family and on personal chores.

My weekends are always taken. Is it possible to teach ARECC in the evenings 
the same way we offer Amateur Radio licensing classes?

The method for teaching and amount of time you choose to devote is strictly 
up to you -- the Mentor/Instructor. If evening licensing classes have done 
well in your area, there's an excellent chance you will be very successful 
with AREC in-person classes also.

How do I apply and qualify to administer the ARECC exams?

Criteria for becoming a Certification Examiner can be found here. An on-line 
registration application is available.

I'm currently a VE but not accredited with ARRL VEC. Am I eligible to serve 
as a Certification Examiner?

Only after you've received accreditation from the ARRL VEC. More information 
about the ARRL VEC program is available.

Are there any limitations on live classroom size or location?

ARECC traditional classes should be treated the same as any Amateur Radio 
license class. The Certification Instructors who are teaching it will 
determine size and location.

What about other courses? What and when will something other than emergency 
communications be offered?

Review the C-CE Course Listing periodically to see new listings. Many 
courses have been added and new ones are constantly under development.

I still have some unanswered questions. Where do I go for answers?

More about the ARRL Certification and Continuing Education program can be 
found at the C-CE Home Page and related C-CE Links found there. E-mail your 
queries to cce at arrl.org. You may also write to ARRL C-CE, 225 Main Street, 
Newington, CT 06111.