Wedgwood Memorial College
Encyclopedia
Wedgwood Memorial College is a small residential college in Barlaston
, near Stoke-on-Trent
in Staffordshire, England
. The college is owned and operated by Stoke-on-Trent City Council, and is nationally important as a centre of Esperanto
education.
There is also a similarly named building in Burslem
, the Wedgwood Institute
, which is sometimes called the "Wedgwood Memorial Institute". This is a completely separate institution.
The college, a member of the Adult Residential Colleges Association
, offers short courses in literature and languages (French, German and Esperanto); political science and history; and art, art history and architectural history. Wedgwood Memorial College has a non-circulating library with 15,000 volumes available for research and private study.
The buildings are also rented out for weddings, parties and small conferences, with eight rooms available that accommodate from ten to 40 people per room. One of these rooms is the Montagu C. Butler Library, located in Esperanto House on the grounds of the college.
in the 1930s, and the college opened in February 1945 in Barlaston Hall
, a country house. The building was endangered by coal mining
operations and a geological fault, which caused major diagonal cracks in the walls. The college moved from Barlaston Hall to Victorian and Edwardian buildings in Barlaston village.
has its main office at Wedgwood Memorial College.
Since 1960 Wedgwood Memorial College has offered a week-long Esperanto
summer school every August. This came about partly through the influence of Horace Barks
, the Lord Mayor of Stoke-on-Trent, who was an advocate of Esperanto.
The college offers a weekend course in Esperanto theatre every January and a weekend residential course in Esperanto language every October. The latter course is particularly suited to people who have completed an introductory free course, whether a traditional postal course or an Internet-mediated one. The Esperanto Association of Britain
offers a partial subsidy to Esperanto learners attending the Wedgwood Memorial College program and who have first completed such an introductory course.
Esperanto tutor Paul Gubbins, who has taught at the college for many years, declares that students typically learn Esperanto to a more advanced level than students of other foreign languages: "Students of Esperanto do not have to wrestle with the irregularities of a foreign language: these impede fluent, uninhibited expression. This means that often, particularly with an advanced group at the college, I find myself not so much ‘teaching’ Esperanto but exploring the language with students – pushing it, testing it and challenging it to an extent that is impossible in a traditional language classroom."
Barlaston
Barlaston is a village and civil parish in the borough of Stafford in the county of Staffordshire, England. It is roughly halfway between the city of Stoke-on-Trent and the small town of Stone. According to the 2001 census the population of the parish was 2,659.-History:The old parish church of...
, near Stoke-on-Trent
Stoke-on-Trent
Stoke-on-Trent , also called The Potteries is a city in Staffordshire, England, which forms a linear conurbation almost 12 miles long, with an area of . Together with the Borough of Newcastle-under-Lyme Stoke forms The Potteries Urban Area...
in Staffordshire, England
Staffordshire
Staffordshire is a landlocked county in the West Midlands region of England. For Eurostat purposes, the county is a NUTS 3 region and is one of four counties or unitary districts that comprise the "Shropshire and Staffordshire" NUTS 2 region. Part of the National Forest lies within its borders...
. The college is owned and operated by Stoke-on-Trent City Council, and is nationally important as a centre of Esperanto
Esperanto
is the most widely spoken constructed international auxiliary language. Its name derives from Doktoro Esperanto , the pseudonym under which L. L. Zamenhof published the first book detailing Esperanto, the Unua Libro, in 1887...
education.
There is also a similarly named building in Burslem
Burslem
The town of Burslem, known as the Mother Town, is one of the six towns that amalgamated to form the current city of Stoke-on-Trent, in the ceremonial county of Staffordshire, in the Midlands of England.-Topography:...
, the Wedgwood Institute
Wedgwood Institute
The Wedgwood Institute is a large red-brick building that stands in Queen Street, in the town of Burslem, Stoke-on-Trent, Staffordshire, England...
, which is sometimes called the "Wedgwood Memorial Institute". This is a completely separate institution.
The college, a member of the Adult Residential Colleges Association
Adult Residential Colleges Association
The Adult Residential Colleges Association is a group of 27 residential colleges in the United Kingdom. The association is based in Felixtowe, Suffolk, England....
, offers short courses in literature and languages (French, German and Esperanto); political science and history; and art, art history and architectural history. Wedgwood Memorial College has a non-circulating library with 15,000 volumes available for research and private study.
The buildings are also rented out for weddings, parties and small conferences, with eight rooms available that accommodate from ten to 40 people per room. One of these rooms is the Montagu C. Butler Library, located in Esperanto House on the grounds of the college.
History of college
The Barlaston estate was acquired by WedgwoodWedgwood
Wedgwood, strictly speaking Josiah Wedgwood and Sons, is a pottery firm owned by KPS Capital Partners, a private equity company based in New York City, USA. Wedgwood was founded on May 1, 1759 by Josiah Wedgwood and in 1987 merged with Waterford Crystal to create Waterford Wedgwood, an...
in the 1930s, and the college opened in February 1945 in Barlaston Hall
Barlaston Hall
Barlaston Hall is an English Palladian country house in the village of Barlaston in Staffordshire, overlooking the valley of the River Trent south of Stoke-on-Trent . It was bought by the Wedgwood pottery company in 1931, but disrepair and subsidence due to coal mining brought the hall close to...
, a country house. The building was endangered by coal mining
Coal mining
The goal of coal mining is to obtain coal from the ground. Coal is valued for its energy content, and since the 1880s has been widely used to generate electricity. Steel and cement industries use coal as a fuel for extraction of iron from iron ore and for cement production. In the United States,...
operations and a geological fault, which caused major diagonal cracks in the walls. The college moved from Barlaston Hall to Victorian and Edwardian buildings in Barlaston village.
Esperanto instruction
The headquarters for the Esperanto Association of BritainEsperanto Association of Britain
The Esperanto Association of Britain is a registered educational charity whose objective is to advance the education of the public in the international language Esperanto....
has its main office at Wedgwood Memorial College.
Since 1960 Wedgwood Memorial College has offered a week-long Esperanto
Esperanto
is the most widely spoken constructed international auxiliary language. Its name derives from Doktoro Esperanto , the pseudonym under which L. L. Zamenhof published the first book detailing Esperanto, the Unua Libro, in 1887...
summer school every August. This came about partly through the influence of Horace Barks
Horace Barks
Horace Barks, OBE was Lord Mayor of Stoke-on-Trent in 1951–1952.Barks was born in the countryside near Stoke-on-Trent and came from a working class background. His experiences in World War I left him with pacifist beliefs...
, the Lord Mayor of Stoke-on-Trent, who was an advocate of Esperanto.
The college offers a weekend course in Esperanto theatre every January and a weekend residential course in Esperanto language every October. The latter course is particularly suited to people who have completed an introductory free course, whether a traditional postal course or an Internet-mediated one. The Esperanto Association of Britain
Esperanto Association of Britain
The Esperanto Association of Britain is a registered educational charity whose objective is to advance the education of the public in the international language Esperanto....
offers a partial subsidy to Esperanto learners attending the Wedgwood Memorial College program and who have first completed such an introductory course.
Esperanto tutor Paul Gubbins, who has taught at the college for many years, declares that students typically learn Esperanto to a more advanced level than students of other foreign languages: "Students of Esperanto do not have to wrestle with the irregularities of a foreign language: these impede fluent, uninhibited expression. This means that often, particularly with an advanced group at the college, I find myself not so much ‘teaching’ Esperanto but exploring the language with students – pushing it, testing it and challenging it to an extent that is impossible in a traditional language classroom."
Further reading
- Cecil Scrimgeour. Fifty Years A-Growing: A History of the North Staffordshire District, the Workers' Educational Association 1921-1971. Stoke-on-Trent, 1973.