Canadian Teens Gain Licenses After Ham Radio Coursework
/In many parts of the world, school is back in session and regular lessons have resumed. Even before regular classes began, however, 21 teenagers in British Columbia, Canada, were already entrenched in some pretty important homework - or should we say hamwork?
Adam, VE7ZAL, and John, VE7TI, believe that their recent course on radio frequencies and electronics may well be unprecedented for secondary school students in Canada. That was what John wrote in the September/October issue of The Communicator, the magazine of Surrey Amateur Radio Communications. John and Adam, a robotics teacher at Kwantlen Park Secondary school in Surrey, British Columbia, teamed up to help nearly two dozen 13- through 17-year-olds get a better grasp on the principles behind amateur radio and pass the gift of radio on this next generation. By the time the course concluded, the students were able to sit the exam for the Canadian Amateur Radio Certificate.
“Throughout the course, we witnessed students experiencing significant revelations about the pervasive role of radio in our daily lives.”
John wrote that Adam had proposed the idea for the course earlier in the year and that while the instruction progressed, the students' enthusiasm grew gradually with each session.
POTA, satellite communications and high-altitude balloons were - literally - among the high points of the lessons. When the sessions ended, the tradition of a Thursday night "Get on the Air" net kept the momentum going for the graduates.
John and Adam hope to repeat the course next year.
Surrey Amateur Radio Communications - https://ve7sar.blogspot.com/
