CASE FOR ESPERANTO

Evening Post, Volume CXXIV, Issue 113, 9 November 1937, Page 5

CASE FOR ESPERANTO

BOND AMONG NATIONS

INTRODUCTION TO SCHOOLS

The increased growth of understanding among the nations that would follow the introduction of Esperanto into school curricula was one of the main points put forward by Mr. E. A. Hornblow, vice-president of the Wellington Esperanto Club, in an address to a meeting of the Wellington School Committees' Federation last evening. Mr. Hornblow said .that the problem of educating the child had become, particularly in the last twenty years, ever-increasingly complex owing to the rapid rate at which the world's common stock of knowledge was being augmented, and the many necessary changes, both in met)»od and curriculum, that had taken place. The question of -introducing Esperanto into the schoor'nurriculum as a compulsory subject was one of pressing urgency Educationists agreed that at the age of eleven the normal child was particularly receptive to language instruction If they were allowed to pass that receptive stage without any endeavour being made to satisfy the linguistic urge, instruction in foreign languages at a later age was rendered more difficult,' both for pupil and teacher, because the child's interest had waned and passed on to other things. French, Latin, and German, favoured by. the colleges, were totally unsuitable for instruction to children at such an early age, owing to their structural peculiarities and the multiplicity of rules and exceptions. The majority of pupils m secondary schools became disheartened in language learning on that account. He could state with certainty that not more than one in ten on = leaving- college was competent to ■ make practical-use of the language he had spent so much .time in studying. Esperanto was the one language which was admirably suitable for instruction during the last two years in the primary school. QUALITIES ENUMERATED. The six reasons why Esperanto should be included in the curricula of all schools were that it was simple and logical, and yet- capable of expressing the finest shades of meaning; it formed an excellent preparation for the further study of languages; it was a valuable aid to the study of geography and the customs of the people of other lands; its literature, both translations arid , original works, warranted the study of the language for its own sake; as the language was now in widespread1 use. it could be put to further practical use in a multiplicity of ways after the child left school; and its general adoption as an international auxiliary language would remove the language barrier, and constitute a definite advance towards world peace. ;, .„ Elaborating his reasons, Mr. Hornblow said the simplicity with which Esperanto was acquired made it possible for pupils to correspond with school children of other countries after a .few. months'. study of .the language. Several members of. the Wellington Esperanto Club' fta'd presented' original plays in the language during their first year, of study,V,-JrC.fact, most of. the. presentations were'of original works by members—a most unusual thing in other language clubs. Zamenhof made a careful study of the vocabularies of existing languages, and after comparing them word for word, constructed Esperanto. Esperanto was a valuable aid to the study-of geography and the customs and history of other peoples. Pupils w.ith a knowledge of Esperanto .had the means of studying these things by the direct method. FIELD OF LITERATURE. Referring to literature, Mr. Hornblow said there were 8000 works in Esperanto, both original and translated, the latter embracing the greatest works of all nations. Thus the Bible, Shakespeare's works, and those of authors such as H..G. Wells were open to Esperantists of every nation. Even modern authors such as P. G. Wodehouse and' Agatha Cnristie wore hot passed over. A rare style,and elegance characterised the works of many famous Esperantist authors, "and the language also lent itself to verse and song. Approximately 130 gazettes and periodicals appeared regularly in Esperanto. One effective way of minimising the chances of war was to educate the child up to peacemindedness. A greater feeling of sympathy was needed b&tween the -nations and the individuals of the nations, and the general use of Esperanto was undoubtedly an advance tow&rds that great ideal.