Be Informed No. 5

DEFECTIVE QUESTIONS IN ELEMENT 3 QUESTION POOL EFFECTIVE JULY 1, 2007

   1. Administer the following questions sparingly.  They require unnecessary rote memorization of technical standards for which reference materials are widely available and are used generally by amateur operators. Their usage displaces questions essential to proving qualifications for General Class operator duties.  They are G1A01, G1A02, G1A03, G1A04, G1A05, G1A06, G1AO7, G1A08, G1A10, G1A11, G1C08, G1G09, G1C10, G1C11, G1C12 and G1C13.

   2. Do not administer G1A13 (D) [97.303]: Which amateur band is shared with the Citizens Radio Service?" 

A. 10 meters

B. 11 meters

C. 12 meters

D. None

  It is a trick question.  Its usage displaces a question essential to proving qualifications for General Class operator duties. Administer, therefore, a more pertinent question.  G1A12 and G1A15 are appropriate.

3.  Do not administer G1B12 (A) [97.101(a)]: Who or what determines "good engineering and good amateur practice" that apply to operation of an amateur station in all respects not covered by the Part 97 rules?

A. The FCC

B. The Control Operator

C. The IEEE

D. The ITU

    It is a misleading question.  Suggested answer "A" is not supported by the citation: "In all respects not specifically covered by FCC Rules each amateur station must be operated in accordance with good engineering and good amateur practice."  The implication of the suggested answer is that the FCC does actually set design standards and operating practices, which is incorrect.  Its usage displaces a question essential to proving qualifications for General Class operator duties.  Administer, therefore, a more pertinent question.  G1B06, G1B07 and G1B09 are appropriate.

   4.  Do not administer G1D03, G1D04, G1D05, G1D07, G1D10, G1D11, G1D12 or G1D13.  They have to do with the VEs' preparing and administering examinations for an amateur operator license.  Section 97.525(a)(3) says that no VEC may accredit a person as a VE if the VEC determines that the person is not competent to perform the functions.  While it may be necessary for a VEC to require a prospective VE to pass an examination as a part of making its determination of the person's competence in preparing and administering examinations for an amateur operator license, it should not be done as part of an examination to determine whether the examinee can properly operate an amateur station.  Less than 5% of amateur operators serve as VEs.[1]  Administering inappropriate questions displaces administering questions essential to proving qualifications for operating properly an amateur station.[2]     

   5.  Do not administer obsolete G1D09.  With the removal of the telegraphy skill requirement, there should be very few situations where credit must be given for holding a CSCE.  Its usage displaces questions essential to proving qualifications for General Class operator duties.   Administer, therefore, a more pertinent question.  G1D05, G1D07, G1D10, G1D12 and G1D13 are appropriate.

   6.  Do not administer G1D11 (B) [97.509 (b)(3)]:  What criteria must be met for a non U.S. citizen to be an accredited Volunteer Examiner?

A. The person must be a resident of the U.S. for a minimum of 5 years

B. The person must hold a U.S. amateur radio license of General class or above

C. The person's home citizenship must be in the ITU 2 region

D. None of these answers is correct; non U.S. citizens cannot be volunteer examiners

  This question is suitable to administer where the suggested answer B is revised to read: "The FCC must have granted the person an amateur operator license of General, Advanced or Amateur Extra Class." The term "U.S." is far too inclusive.  At least seven U.S. agencies have issued amateur service licenses: Army, Navy, Air Force, Department of Interior, National Science Foundation, National Telecommunications and Information Administration and the FCC.  Persons are ineligible to be accredited as a VE on the basis of holding any of these non-FCC U.S. licenses.  Otherwise, administer a more pertinent question.  G1D05, G1D07, G1D10, G1D12 and G1D13 are appropriate.

   7.   Do not administer G1E02 (D) [97.205(a)]: "When may a 10 meter repeater retransmit the 2 meter signal from a station having a Technician Class control operator?"

A. Under no circumstances

B. Only if the station on 10 meters is operating under a Special Temporary   Authorization allowing such retransmission

C. Only during an FCC-declared General state of communications emergency

D. Only if the 10 meter control operator holds at least a General class license

   It is a trick question.  A fundamental requirement is adorned with superfluous distractions.  "D" is the answer because a 10 meter repeater must always have a control operator of at least General Class.  This is so, regardless of whether or not it is retransmitting signals from some other band.    The citation, furthermore, is not supportive.  It simply says that any amateur station licensed to a holder of a Technician, General, Advanced or Amateur Extra Class operator license may be a repeater. A holder of a Technician, General, Advanced or Amateur Extra Class operator license may be the control operator of a repeater, subject to the privileges of the class of operator license held. The question implies - incorrectly - that it is the duty of the repeater control operator to pre-determine the amateur operator class of the control operator of every user station.  Its usage displaces a question essential to proving qualifications for General Class operator duties. Administer, therefore, a more pertinent question.  G1E01, G1E05, G1E09 are appropriate.

   8.  Do not administer defective question G1E08 (B) [97.115(a)(b)]:  "Which of the following is a requirement for a non-licensed person to communicate with a foreign amateur radio station from a US amateur station at which a licensed control operator is present?"
A. Information must be exchanged in English
B. The foreign amateur station must be in a country with which the United States has a third party agreement
C. The control operator must have at least a General class license
D. All of these answers are correct

  The suggested answer B discloses that it is really addressing third party communications.  The citation Section 97.115(a)(b), however, is a stretch.  The question reads as though a "non-licensed person" has certain rights to communicate by amateur radio; an inverted spin on the prerogative of the control operator to allow the third party to participate in stating the message.  The term "US" is far too inclusive.  At least seven U.S. agencies have issued amateur service licenses: Army, Navy, Air Force, Department of Interior, National Science Foundation, National Telecommunications and Information Administration and the FCC.  The scope of rules questions should be confined to the FCC rules.  Its usage displaces a question essential to proving qualifications for General Class operator duties. Administer, therefore, a more pertinent question.  G1E01, G1E05, G1E09 are appropriate.

   9.  Do not administer defective question G1E10 (D) [97.115(a)(2)]:  "Which of the following is a permissible third party communication during routine amateur radio operations?"

A. Permitting an unlicensed person to speak to a licensed amateur anywhere in the    world

B. Sending a business message for another person, as long it is for a non-profit    organization

C. Sending a business message for another person, as long as the control operator has    no pecuniary interest in the message

D. Sending a message to a third party through a foreign station, as long as that person is a licensed amateur radio operator

   The point that the citation section 97.115(a)(2) is apparently attempting to make is in the closing two sentences:  "No station shall transmit messages for a third party to any station within the jurisdiction of any foreign government whose administration has not made such an arrangement. This prohibition does not apply to a message for any third party who is eligible to be a control operator of the station."  Being a "licensed amateur radio operator" is not necessarily the same as being "eligible to be a control operator of the station."  The suggested answer, therefore, is flawed.    Its usage displaces a question essential to proving qualifications for General Class operator duties. Administer, therefore, a more pertinent question.  G1E01, G1E05, G1E09 are appropriate.

   10.  Do not administer trick question G2C05 (B) [97.403]: "What type of transmission would a control operator be making when transmitting out of the amateur band without station identification during a life threatening emergency?"

A. A prohibited transmission

B. An unidentified transmission

C. A third party communication

D. An auxiliary transmission

  The suggested answer B is obvious from the phrase in the question, "without station identification."  The other distractors must be in there to masquerade this question as being somehow linked with emergencies; question Group G2C is headlined to be about emergencies, including drills and emergency communications.  It is also defective in that a control operator cannot "transmit" - a treacherous misconception.  Stations do the transmitting; control operators can only allow or cause a station to transmit.  There are specific rules for each.  Additionally, there is nothing in the referenced Section 97.403 about an unidentified transmission.  Rather, it says that no provision of these rules prevents the use by an amateur station of any means of radiocommunication at its disposal to provide essential communication needs in connection with the immediate safety of human life and immediate protection of property when normal communication systems are not available.  Its usage displaces a question more essential to proving qualifications for General Class operator duties. Administer, therefore, a more pertinent question.  G2C08, G2C11 and G2C12 are appropriate.

   11.  Do not administer question G2C06.  It has been withdrawn.

   12. Do not administer question G2D02 (B): "What are the objectives of the Amateur Auxiliary?" and suggests only overly simplified answers.  The FCC-ARRL agreement, however, says that the purpose of the AA is to "improve rules compliance in the Amateur Radio Service. The objectives of this program are to foster a wider knowledge of and better compliance with laws, rules and regulations governing the Amateur Radio Service, to extend the concepts of self-regulation and self-administration of the Service, and to enhance the opportunity for individual amateurs to contribute to the public welfare as outlined in the basis and purpose of the Amateur Radio Service."  The purpose of the amateur service is stated in Section 97.3(4):  "self-training, intercommunication and technical investigations carried out by amateurs, that is, duly authorized persons interested in radio technique solely with a personal aim and without pecuniary interest."  Its usage displaces a question essential to proving qualifications for General Class operator duties. Administer, therefore, a more pertinent question.  G2D01, G2D03, G2DO5, G2D06, G2D07, G2D08, G2D09, G2D10 and G2D11 are appropriate.

   13. Do not administer question G2D07.  It has been withdrawn.

   14. Do not administer G2E02 or G2E03.  They concern matters not needed to be known in order to perform properly the duties of an amateur service licensee.  Their usage displaces questions essential to proving qualifications for General Class operator duties. Administer, therefore, more pertinent questions.  G2E01, G2E06, G2E07, G2E08 and G2E09 are appropriate. 

   15. Do not administer G2E10 or G2E11.  These questions concern qualifications that most likely do not need to be proven until prior to the granting of a FCC Amateur Extra Class operator license.  Their use displaces questions pertinent to proving qualifications for General Class operator duties.  Administer, therefore, more pertinent questions.  G2E01, G2E06, G2E07, G2E08 and G2E09 are appropriate. 

   16.  Do not administer question G5B10.  It has been withdrawn.

   17.  Do not administer G4E01 (D): Which of the following emission types are permissible while operating HF mobile?

A. CW

B. SSB

C. FM

D. All of these choices are correct

   In addition to being unsuitable for other than multiple-choice format, the correct answer suffers from the "All of these..." syndrome as well being located in the well-established-pattern position "D."  More importantly, however, it implies - incorrectly - that there are FCC rules limiting the transmission of amateur station located in vehicles.  Its usage displaces a question essential to proving qualifications for General Class operator duties. Administer, therefore, a more pertinent question.  G4E05, G4E06, G4E07, G4E09, G4E10, G4E11, G4A12 and G4A13 are appropriate.

   18.  Administer G9A03 (D) sparingly:  What is the characteristic impedance of flat ribbon TV type twin lead?

A. 50 ohms

B. 75 ohms

C. 100 ohms

D. 300 ohms

  With the demise of VHF telecasting reception, the widespread use of this once-popular type of feed line will probably come to an end.  Its usage displaces a question essential to the proving qualifications for General Class operator duties. Administer, therefore, a more pertinent question.  G9A01, G9A04, G9A06, G9A09, G9A10, G9A12, G9A13 and G9A14 are appropriate. Note in Subelement G9, the questions use interchangeably both the terms: "feedline" (G9A01, G9A02, G9A05, G9A14, G0A12) and "feed line" (G9A06, G9A08, G9A09, G9A10, G9A11 and G0A11).  Presumably, they mean the same thing.

   19. Do not administer G0A06 (C) [no citation]: Which transmitter(s) at a multiple user site is/are responsible for RF safety compliance?"

A. Only the most powerful transmitter on site

B. All transmitters on site, regardless of their power level or duty cycle

C. Any transmitter that contributes 5% or more of the MPE

D. Only those that operate at more than 50% duty cycle

  It can be administered where answer "B" is graded as correct.  Section 97.13(c), in the overriding document says, "Before causing or allowing an amateur station to transmit from any place where the operation of the station could cause human exposure to RF electromagnetic field levels in excess of those allowed under Sec. 1.1310 of this chapter, the licensee is required to take certain actions."  The suggested answer (C) implies that certain transmitters are exempt from this requirement.

   20.  Withhold administering G0A10 (D) [no citation]:  What do the RF safety rules require when the maximum power output capability of an otherwise compliant station is reduced?

A. Filing of the changes with the FCC

B. Recording of the power level changes in the log or station records

C. Performance of a routine RF exposure evaluation

D. No further action is required

   Although simple logic leads to the same conclusion, Part 97 is silent on this matter.  The RF safety rules for amateur stations are in Section 97.13(c), which references Section 1.1307(b) and OET Bulletin 65.  Do not administer this question until it is amended to include a valid citation to the RF safety rules or the phrase is deleted.   

   21.  Do not administer G0B14 ( B) [no citation].  It has been withdrawn.        

   22. There are 37 questions that have "All of these..." as a VEC-suggested answer choice. Of the correct answers, 6 are in choice (A); 11 are in choice (B); 6 are in choice (C); and 14 are in choice (D).  They are G1A11D, G1B08D, G1B11C, G1E04D, G1E08B, G2A11D, G2D09D, G3B12D, G3C03C, G3C06B, G4A03D, G4B14C, G4C06D, G4D03B, G4D11B, G4E01D, G4E06A, G4E11C, G5A13D, G6A07D, G6C09D, G7A15C, G7B02A, G7B11B, G7B12A, G8B10B, G9C04A, G9C09A, G9C10D, G9D02B, G9D08B, G0A05A, G0A08C, G0A12B and G0A15D.  While the correct answers are not as heavily loaded in choice (D) as they are in Element 2, it is still overloaded.  There should be a more evenly balanced redistribution, suggest 10, 9, 9 and 9.

   23.  Administer the following questions sparingly.  Section 97.503 specifies that an Element 2 written examination concern the privileges of a Technician Class operator license and that an Element 3 written examination concern the privileges of a General Class operator license. These questions concern qualifications, therefore, that should have been proven in Element 2 prior to the granting of a Technician Class operator license.  Their use in an Element 3 examination, therefore, displaces questions pertinent to proving qualifications for General Class operator duties.   G1E03, G2A03, G2A12, G2B01, G2B02, G2BO3, G2B07, G2B12, G2C01, G2C06, G2C09, G4B08, G4B11, G4E07, G4E08, G4E09, G4E12, G4E13, G5A01, G5A02, G5A03, G5A04, G5A06, G5A07, G5A08, G5A09, G5A10, G5A11, GRA12, GRA13, G5A15, G5B01, G5B02, G5B03, G5B04, G5B05, G5B06, G5B07, G5B08, G5B09, G5B10, G5B11, G5B12, G5B13, G5B14, G5B15, G5C01, G5C02, G5C03, G5C04, G5C05, G5C06, G5C07, G5C08, G5C09, G5C10, G5C11, G5C12, G5C13, G5C14, G5C15, G5C16, G6A01, G6A02, G6A03, G6A04, G6A05, G6A07, G6A08, G6A09, G6A10, G6A11, G6A12, G6B10, G6B11, G6B12, G6B13, G6B14, G6B15, G6B16, G6C07, G6C11, G6C12, G7A01, G7A02, G7A07, G7A08, G7A09, G7A10, G7A11, G7A12, G7A13, G7A14, G7A15, G7A16, G7A17, G7A18, G7A19, G7A20, G7A21, G7A22, G7A23, G7A24, G7B07, G7B08, G7B09, G7B10, G7B11, G7B12, G7B13, G7B14, G8A01,  G8A02, G8A04, G8A05, G8A11, G8B04, G8B07, G8B12, G9B04, G8B07, G8B08, G8B11,G9C08, G9DO5, G0B02, G0B04, G0BO6, G0B10, G0B11 and G0B14.  

   24.  Some 73 questions are written so as to be usable only for the multiple-choice format.  These questions, therefore, are unsuitable for use in question sets administered in any other format. 

   Note:  Neither side of the multiple-choice question format issue is taken herein.  Prior to the VE system, the FCC's use of the multiple-choice format had to be defended against complaints from the amateur service community.  The FCC relied upon that no-knowledge-to-grade format because qualifying for an amateur operator license was not in the job description for its examiners. The VEC system cannot claim that justification.  The original question pools for the VE system did not have suggested answers.  There were some reports of exams being administered in other formats. It was the LARC VEC that pioneered the incorporation of suggested answers in multiple-choice format.  Even though it is probably the most widely administered format, arguments that the statement of this question or that answer has to be compromised because of the limitations of the multiple-choice format are baseless.  No question or answer should be compromised in order to satisfy the limitations of a multiple-choice examination format. 

   The VEs are responsible for preparing and administering the examinations, including writing the questions and determining the correctness of an examinee's answers.  The VECs are responsible for coordinating the VEs efforts and maintaining the questions pools.  Questions should be written so as to enable an examination to also be administered in other formats, such as essay and fill-in-the blank. 

   Q.  When making up Element 3 questions sets for our VEC, if I withhold all of the suspect questions, I end up with only 295 questions rather than the 350 specified.  Can I add back 55 defective questions or is there a better way?

   A.  There is no legitimate justification for administering any defective question.  For each pool question identified in the above, the reason it is defective is given.  The individual VEC's obligation is to provide the administering VE teams that it coordinates with valid Element 3 question sets, or with suitable instructions for making them.  They are to enable the VEs determine if the examinee can prove possession of the operational and technical qualifications required to perform properly the duties of a General Class operator.  See Sections 97.503(b) & 97.507(c).  Including a defective question from the pool in any question set would not enable the VEs to perform their function. Maintaining the pools is the obligation of all fourteen VECs.  They must cooperate in doing this.  See Section 97.523.  Element 3 is way overdue for revision, to be sure.  Such is scheduled for July 1, 2011.  The improvements the VECs have made in their Element 2 pool should help restore our confidence that they will get it right this time.  Until then, rely upon the valid questions in the pool only.  Rearrange the questions into 35 groups.  For each question set, select at random one question from each group.  This approach will result in the question set addressing the most topics.

Revised January 31, 2010

Supersedes all prior versions

[1] Estimated at 30,000 VEs.

[2] See FCC letter to M. Mancuso March 19, 2009 DA-09618.