TEACHING ESPERANTO

Sun (Auckland), Volume III, Issue 849, 18 December 1929, Page 12

TEACHING ESPERANTO

CLASSES AFTER SCHOOL HOURS COMMITTEES TO DECIDE The question of allowing classes in Esperanto to be formed in schoois after school hours was discussed bv the Auckland Education Board this morning The Education department, in reply to an application from the Esperanto Assocation, replied that power lay with the board, and this morning the latter body left the final decision to the various school committees. , -l 11 ;, 1! - s - W - Kin " held that the boaid should not allow its schools to be used for such a purpose. it was a. question of policy. He believed that children had quite enough work to do at present without studying a language which he believed would never come mto popular use. The children w'ould not be obliged to join the class but if it were conducted by the school teacher there would be a certain moral suasion. ‘Tf we allow these classes, the board is putting its seal of approval on the teaching of this new language,” declared Air. King. The chairman, Mr. A. Burns, thought sufficient protection was given by leaving it to the school committees to judge each application on its own merits. He saw no real objection to the system. A voluntary Hebrew class had been in existence at Bayfield School for several years. All*. King, however, declared he could see no analogy between the teaching of Hebrew and Esperanto. There was a Jewish community and nation which used the former. The board decided on the voices to leave the final decision to the committees.