COVID-19 has stopped many activities that we all considered to be part of our normal existence. From going to work, dining out, to taking an Amateur Radio exam. Some clever hams using tools that were developed for the class room have started giving exams remotely. I am a volunteer examiner with one of our local clubs and we started hearing about remote testing and we decided to look into how it worked.
Dirk (W0RI) who is one of my fellow examiners and I even participated in a couple of remote testing sessions with a W5YI group in Texas. Participating in those sessions was very inciteful for both of us. The group was very welcoming, helpful, and willing to answer all of our questions. I just want to say I think that remote testing is absolutely necessary right now as we all do our best to navigate these difficult times. I think the sessions were well run and provided a valuable service to the community.
At the end of the day, I still prefer to do our face-to-face testing sessions with candidates. It has nothing to do with the integrity of testing but it has all to do with the personal interaction with new hams entering our community and making new friends. Don’t get me wrong, remote testing is here to stay. I am fortunate to live in an area where in normal times it is easy to find a testing session. There are those who live in places that require them to travel significant distances to test and for them remote testing is a terrific option.
Life will return to normal or at least our new normal but without a doubt many hams in the future will have received their ticket by attending a remote testing session. 73