Editing Esperanto (section)

=== Third-language acquisition ===
{{Main|Paderborn method}}
From 2006 to 2011, four primary schools in [[England|Britain]], with 230 pupils, followed a course in "propaedeutic Esperanto"—that is, instruction in Esperanto to raise language awareness, and to accelerate subsequent learning of foreign languages—under the supervision of the University of Manchester. As they put it,

<blockquote>Many schools used to teach children the [[Recorder (musical instrument)|recorder]], not to produce a nation of recorder players, but as a preparation for learning other instruments. [We teach] Esperanto, not to produce a nation of Esperanto-speakers, but as a preparation for learning other languages.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.springboard2languages.org |title=Springboard to Languages |publisher=Springboard2languages.org |access-date=December 5, 2010 |archive-date=November 9, 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201109022411/https://www.springboard2languages.org/ |url-status=live }}</ref></blockquote>

The results showed that the pupils achieved enhanced metalinguistic awareness, though the study did not indicate whether a course in a language other than Esperanto would have led to similar results.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://repository.essex.ac.uk/5991/1/Repository_Roehr_2012b_EAB.pdf|author=Karen Roehr|title=The Springboard to Languages evaluation project: a summary report|publisher=University of Essex|access-date=2021-06-26|archive-date=June 26, 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210626135228/http://repository.essex.ac.uk/5991/1/Repository_Roehr_2012b_EAB.pdf|url-status=live}}</ref> Similar studies have been conducted in [[New Zealand]],<ref>Report: Article in {{lang|eo|Enciklopedio de Esperanto}}, volume I, p.436, on the pedagogic value of Esperanto.</ref> the United States,<ref>Report: Edward Thorndike, ''Language Learning''. Bureau of Publications of Teachers College, 1933. [http://www.interlingua.org/ Interlingua.org] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080820025141/http://www.interlingua.org/ |date=August 20, 2008 }}</ref><ref>Helen S. Eaton, "The Educational Value of an Artificial Language." ''The Modern Language Journal'', No. 12, pp. 87–94 (1927). [http://www.blackwellpublishing.com/mlj/newsearchres.asp?contenttype=AA&topic=Artificial%20Language&searchtype=adv Blackwellpublishing.com] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090703210156/http://www.blackwellpublishing.com/mlj/newsearchres.asp?contenttype=AA&topic=Artificial%20Language&searchtype=adv |date=July 3, 2009 }}</ref> England,<ref name=Williams_1965>Williams, N. (1965) 'A language teaching experiment', ''Canadian Modern Language Review'' 22.1: 26–28</ref> and Germany.<ref>Protocols of the annual November meetings in Paderborn "{{lang|eo|Laborkonferencoj: Interlingvistiko en Scienco kaj Klerigo}}" (Working conference: Interlinguistics in Science and Education), which can be obtained from the Institute of Pedagogic Cybernetics in Paderborn. Also in the works by Frank, Lobin, Geisler, and Meder.</ref> Many of these experiments' findings were compromised by unclear objectives, brief or anecdotal reporting, and a lack of methodological rigor.<ref name="springboardtolanguages">{{cite book |last1=Tellier |first1=Angela |title=Esperanto as a starter language for child second-language learners in the primary school |date=2013 |publisher=Esperanto UK |location=Great Britain |isbn=978-0-902756-35-9 |edition=second |pages=11–12}}</ref> However, the results of these studies were consistently favorable, and suggested that studying Esperanto before another foreign language expedites the acquisition of the other, natural language.