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lernu! turns 5

December 21st, 2007 is the fifth anniversary of the launch of lernu!, the largest and most-used website for learning Esperanto. To mark the occation, we have created a collection of interesting information about the project, pictures, photographs, and interviews with the creators and users of the site. We hope that you'll like them; perhaps you'll even use them for an article in your publication, a posting in your blog, or a message in a forum or e-mail list. If you have questions about the project or more ideas about how to mark lernu!'s 5th birthday, you're welcome to contact us!

About the background and general idea behind the project

http://www.lernu.net/pri_lernu/index.php

Organizations behind lernu!

http://www.lernu.net/pri_lernu/subtenantoj/index.php

People behind lernu!

1. Core team - a small group of people who keep busy with the project daily, help and coordinate the work of other helpers, work quite a lot themselves and, in cooperation with helpers, users and ESF, make decisions about the long-term evolution of lernu!. The team has changed significantly over the course of the project and, at the moment, consists of 6 people from 5 countries and 3 continents (http://www.lernu.net/pri_lernu/teamo.php).
2. Translators - heroes who continually translate the constantly growing contents of lernu! to other languages, help the improvement of the project with comments and advice, and enable communication with users who don't speak Esperanto; more often than not, they do so on a completely volunteer basis. A special subgroup of translators are lexicographers, who are concerned with the lernu! dictionaries (http://www.lernu.net/pri_lernu/helpantoj.php).
3. Language helpers - the teachers of lernu!, who correct course correspondence for several of the courses, give advice about how to improve course materials, answer users' language questions, conduct virtual lessons and (some) are active in the forums. At the moment, it's a group of thirty people and it's not uncommon for the same people to be both language helpers and translators for a certain language (http://www.lernu.net/pri_lernu/lingvohelpantoj.php).
4. Other volunteers, who help the site through creation of content (like courses), drawing, graphics work, recording sounds, programming, testing, providing advice and comments, etc. These volunteers have undoubtedly numbered in the hundreds, since the beginning of the project.
5. Users of the site – last, but certainly not least! Without the continued growth of the community of users, with their support, wishes, ideas, and criticisms, the site certainly would not be able to evolve as it has so far, and as it continues to do. (At the moment lernu! has 56302 registered users.)

Description of the site

lernu.net is a free website for learning Esperanto. You don't have to pay to register or to use any of the contents. There are a few pages at lernu! that inform about Esperanto itself, and about reasons for learning it, but the main goal of lernu! is the instruction of Esperanto. lernu! provides every resource that one needs to reach a high level of Esperanto - from nothing. lernu.net contains learning tools, tools of assistance, tools for communication, and things to read, so that users not only learn Esperanto, but also practice it. lernu! is useable in Esperanto and in about 30 national languages. Translations are done by countless volunteer translators.

Learning tools

The learning resources at lernu.net include courses, exercises, games, and exams. There are many courses at lernu.net. The majority of the courses are basic or intermediate level, but there are also some courses that have advanced-level material. Most of the courses available on the site were created internally at lernu!, with content written by members of the lernu! team. lernu! also offers versions of some classic courses, such as "Gerda Malaperis" and "La Zagreba Metodo", as well as a course that is based on the exercises found in the Fundamento, entitled "Pri la Fundamento".

lernu! is aware that different students have different learning styles, and learn most effectively using different methodologies. Because of that, the courses at lernu! follow multiple instructional methods. For example, in some courses, the student learns words and grammar, and then reads a text and answers questions (Ana Pana, Ana Renkontas). in other courses, they read Esperanto sentences with accompanying translations, to learn Esperanto grammar by means of examples, rather than through rules (Vojaĝu kun Zam). There are also courses that follow the direct method; students learn the grammar using examples and pictures, with few explanations (Bildoj kaj Demandoj). lernu! is especially proud of "La Puzlo Esperanto," in which the student drags around roots and affixes to construct Esperanto sentences. This course is a fun and interactive way of showing students how word building works in Esperanto, and how Esperanto grammar is fundamentally different from the grammars of many other languages.

The content of each course varies, but most of them contain a text to be read, a vocabulary learning section, fill-in-the-blanks exercises, and reading comprehension questions that relate to the text. Although Esperanto is written using a phonetic alphabet, many courses at lernu! have sound files that students can use to hear the correct pronunciation and improve their ability to understand spoken text. Some courses have listening exercises, and one course, "Mi estas komencanto", is primarily based on speaking and listening.

Most of the exercises in the courses are corrected automatically. However, the exercises in three courses ("Ana Pana", "Ana Renkontas", and "Kio okazas") are corrected by a tutor. Students can choose a tutor who speaks their native language (when possible). The students not only receive corrections for the exercises they have completed, but can also communicate with the tutor to ask questions and get more detailed explanations of issues that concern them. lernu! now has almost 30 tutors, who are of all ages and live all over the world.

Many courses offer an informal self-evaluation test at the end, to allow students to measure their comprehension of the contents of the course. In addition, ther eare several serious exams that users can use to evaluate their progress in the language. These exams are given in Esperanto only, and test grammar, listening comprehension, reading comprehension, and vocabulary. Another exam tests knowledge of the Esperanto movement. Students can receive a diploma after successfully passing an exam.

There are also "virtual lessons" at lernu!. In the virtual lessons, students meet with a tutor in a virtual classroom, which looks like a chat room, but with a webpage visible at the side. The tutor guides a lesson; students can communicate with the tutor and with other students, just like in a real classroom. The tutor guiding the lesson can show the students various webpages as needed, to illustrate their points and give examples. Virtual lessons are available at different levels, and are taught in several languages (both national languages and Esperanto, according to the level of the students).

To supplement their studies, students at lernu! can practice their new knowlege with the many different exercises found at lernu!. Some exercises are linked to courses, but there are many other exercises on the topics of grammar, vocabulary, and so forth. Users can use the exercises to practice only those parts of the language that they find most problematic. There are many language-learning games available at lernu!, which students can use to practice the language in a fun atmosphere. The exercises and the games are available at several levels; both beginners and advanced speakers can benefit from them.

Tools for assistance

lernu! offers not only courses, but also resources to support language learning. Among these resources are dictionaries, grammars, and texts for reading practice. The site offers many dictionaries (bi-directional, between Esperanto and many other languages). The dictionaries are continually improving and expanding, thanks to the work of the volunteers who translate the site.

The dictionary at lernu! is unique among online Esperanto dictionaries. When a user looks up a word, the dictionary breaks the word apart into its component roots and affixes, and gives a definition for each element of the word. For beginners, it isn't always obvious which part of the word is the root and which part is an affix. For example, few dictionaries would contain a word like "birdeto" (little bird), because it's clear to an experienced speaker that the meaning is bird/et/o - "little bird". A beginner may not immediately see that, and spend time searching fruitlessly for the root word "birdet/" in their dictionary. With the lernu! dictionary, however, a beginner can input the word "birdeto" and immediately see the form "bird/et/o", with definitions for "birdo" and "-et-".

Almost all texts at lernu! are "clickable". That means that a user can click on a word, and a translation appears in a hover box (according to the language currently selected in the dictionary). Using this tool, it is very easy to check the meanig of a word, without typing it into the dictionary or searching for it in a paper dictionary. The user simply clicks, and instantly sees the translation.

lernu! also offers several descriptions of Esperanto grammar. There are two grammars available on the site. The first is a concise grammar, which is translated into each site language. The concise grammar describes basic topics of Esperanto grammar. The second is for higher-level students who are ready to learn the grammar in more detail. The detailed grammar is available only in Esperanto, and is an abridged version of the PMEG (Plena Manlibro de Esperanta Gramatiko). In addition to the grammar guides, there is also a page that has detailed desciptions of common difficulties in Esperanto grammar.

In the lernu! library there are many texts that students can use to practice reading. There are many stories from the book "Vere aŭ Fantazie", by Claude Piron. For some of those texts, there is a sound file, so the student can not only read the story, but also listen to it and improve their ability to understand speech. For beginners, there are several texts that have a phrase-by-phrase translation, to help the student see more clearly how ideas in their language are translated into Esperanto. There are also writings (both in Esperanto and in other languages) about Esperanto history and culture, information about Esperanto publications, and summaries of Esperanto books, to inform students about the vast quantity of Esperanto literature that's available. The library doesn't just contain text; short films and music can also be found there.

Communication tools

lernu.net is not just a learning tool, but also a communications tool. It is difficult to learn a language without having an opportunity to practice it, so at lernu.net, users can communicate with each other in many different ways. Users can contact one another with private messages, to practice writing in a relaxed atmosphere. They can send e-cards, to congratulate other users on birthdays or holidays, or simply to say hi. There is also an instant messenger, that users can use to chat with other users who are on the site at the same time.

Many users use the lernu.net forums to discuss various topics. There are some forums in different languages that beginners can use to ask questions about the language, talk about the difficulties they are having, and get advice from experienced Esperanto speakers who also speak their native language. But most of the forums are in Esperanto, and the users use them to practice the language in a fun way. Sometimes the users use the forums to talk about the language itself, but usually they talk about various topics, including world politics, history, and favorite TV series. The forums are also frequented by experienced Esperanto speakers and several members of the lernu.net team, who ensure that there is always an experienced speaker keeping an eye on the discussions, who can answer complicated or difficult questions about the language.

Statistics

Detailed and up-to-date statistics about the use of the website can always be consulted at: http://www.lernu.net/pri_lernu/statistiko/resumo.php.

Particularly interesing figures and comparisons, with graphs: http://www.lernu.net/pri_lernu/statistiko/index.php.

How to help the project?

Practically: http://www.lernu.net/pri_lernu/subteno/praktike.php
Financially: http://www.lernu.net/pri_lernu/subteno/finance.php

Thanks

First, we would like to thank the organization ESF (Esperantic Studies Foundation), who have provided important support to lernu!. Without it, the website would not exist at all. Also, we would like to thank everyone who contributed to the success of the website:

• (ex)team members, programers, and designers, who constructed the website from nothing;
• translators, who dum all of those years translated the constantly growing contents;
• language helpers, who corrected thousands of assignments sent from the users;
• dictionary editors, who compiled and edited the dictionaries - a crusial part of lernu!;
• helpers, who help improve lernu.net in many different ways, through their comments, drawings, articles, and other contributions;
• publications and other websites who have advertised lernu.net and/or published good articles;
• and of course the users, who have not only contributed to the page through their comments, but have also created a very friendly and helpful community.

Without them lernu! would not be what it is now. Thank you so much!!!

Interview with project coordinator

Interview with Sonja Petrović Lundberg, leader of the lernu! team, for the Italian esperantist revue:

Daniele Binaghi: Sonja, you are the organizer of the team of lernu.net, right? How is it to work internationally, through the internet? Can you give examples of problems, and of solutions?
Sonja Petrović Lundberg: Yes, I am one of the team members of lernu!, since the beginning of the project. The other team members (5 at the moment) and collaborators (dozens) come from different countries and continents of the world, and to work together internationally like that is really inspiring and enthusing, but sometimes also complicated. For example, in the team, we have online meetings every week, but it is difficult to find a time that is suitable for everyone. The American team member has to wake up at 5 or 6 in the morning, and the team member living in Korea must remain awake until somewhat late at night to be able to participate in the meetings. The Korean and Canadian programmers are almost never online at the same time, which sometimes makes it impossible to put important programming changes into effect. Another difficulty in working together comes from the differing cultures and social rules: one Brazilian collaborator decided to leave the project because of the role of gay characters in one of the courses, some Chinese began to sabotage the project because of a short lesson about Tibet in another course, and several Americans complained about the existence of a list of curse words. But luckily, those examples are relatively rare. Although the site includes more than 20 languages and that number is growing, we have actually be experiencing less and less problems with communicating in different languages, thanks to the carefully developed translation and communication systems on one hand, and, even more importantly, to the work of the many volunteer translators and tutors on the other hand, which cannot be overestimated. To make their work easier and more comfortable, we, in addition to constantly improving the tutoring system, must always be careful to use language neutral wordings (for example: you can't say that something will happen in "summer 2008", because that indicates different parts of the year in the northern and southern hemispheres), that menu items be easily translated to other languages with short expressions (because of space concerns), etc.
DB: Almost 100000 visitors monthly, according to lernu! statistics; how does this fact make your work more difficult, or help?
SPL: The high number of site visitors requires quick, effective, and traffic-minimizing technical solutions, with as few calls to the server as possible, and so forth. Several times already, we have had to modernize the base system hosting the site to allow it to function properly with ever-increasing numbers of simultaneous users, and it was also necessary to make the creation of many pages as automatic as possible, in addition to the performance of other tasks that we did by hand at the beginning. That, understandably, made our task more difficult, but that also motivates us to constantly improve the site, and the knowledge that it is used so heavily gives us joy and inspiration.
DB: lernu! has changed a lot during its "short" life; are there new large-scale changes that are foreseen for the site in the near future, or is your work now aimed at improving what already exists?
SPL: We are not planning any large-scale new changes in the near future, but we are planning large additions. Right now are are working on a powerful analysis system that will follow the behavior of our users (while protecting their privacy, of course), in order to: 1) give us more detailed information about how the site is actually used, which parts are the most popular, which have perhaps gone unnoticed (lernu! does have several thousand pages), and which should be better advertised or improved, etc; 2) to enable users to better personalize the page and adapt it to their needs, with a personal plan of study, personal study suggestions generated by the user's use of the site, success in exams, and so forth. Another addition, or rather expansion, that we have dreamed about for a long time is the user of lernu! tools to teach other languages, for example small or minority languages for which no good courses exist online. We are now looking for partners and possible funding sources for that kind of project. Thirdly, we want to link lernu! even more closely to the Esperanto movement, through the new project aktuale.info.
DB: Recently, many new websites for Esperanto speakers have appeared (I am speaking, for example, of Klaku.net or Amikumu.com); even Ipernity.com has been translated into Esperanto. How do you see the future of Esperanto online (for example, will Esperanto speakers begin to understand how to use the internet more effectively?)? And do you foresee stronger links betwee lernu! and those websites?

SPL: I think that many Esperanto speakers, since the appearance of the Internet, have understood its importance in spreading Esperanto, and have done a very good job, according to their ability, in using it. I myself was not yet an Esperanto speaker at the time, but I heard about the early versions of Esperanto.net, Kiosko, which was also popular outside the world of Esperanto, and the other sites of Franko Luin, PMEG, which evolved in and with the internet, dictionaries, courses, and works of literature that were put online very early on, and were therefore made available to the public free of charge. You couldn't ask for many more pioneers in a whole new field, I think, who did that work completely without pay and only in their free time. But you are right that recently (maybe we should say since the beginning of this millennium) there have been more and more organized and serious attempts to identify the profound needs of the world of Esperanto online, and answer them. That seems to me to be the right path, and increasing the professionalism of the work by finding for a way to be able to pay for the work sometimes (to ensure a high level of quality and continuity) seem to me to be necessary conditions. Another important point, I think, is striving to minimize repetition of work that has already be done, through utilizing and improving what already exists. lernu! wants to collect in one single location every kind of learning material for Esperanto, so that: 1) those who want to learn don't have to wander among different websites; 2) those who want to teach online (individuals, Esperanto organizations of different levels, etc) have easily available help for teaching Esperanto online in their own language - it's rare that a single person has both the pedagogical and the technical knowledge to make a good online course; at lernu! there are already people with a vast range of knowledge and experience, and they can provide the remainder of the help needed; 3) not everyone who wants to create an online course in their language has to begin from scratch; instead, they can simply translate the material that is already ready, or use pieces of it (for example: dictionaries, grammatical explanations, exercises, an active community with diverse communication tools) and with the help of the programmers, add their own course, or game, dictionary, exercise, grammar... For stronger links with other online projects (aside from aktuale.info, which you can read about in the E@I wiki) we don't have concrete plans, but we are always open to collaboration. Exchanges of links, possible graphic advertisements, and information are only minimal examples of what we are ready to do.
DB: In December 2007, lernu! will turn five. How would you like to celebrate such an important milestone.
SPL: Through new collaborators and helpers. So if any of your readers would like to help us translate the site, become a tutor (checking lessons and answering questions of Esperanto students), contribute materials, help with advertising or financing the site, they will find detailed information on the site, under About lernu!/How to help (http://www.lernu.net/pri_lernu/subteno/index.php).

Opinions of users

José Antonio Vergara (Chile): Here is an attractive, high level, milestone, very useful, high quality project that we can be proud of, in the whole history of Esperanto, which is a continuation in the new generation of the incredible persistence and devotion of the people who, in the 1920's and 1930's, produced tens (or even hundreds) of thousands of brochures in many languages, under the name Ŝlosilo de Esperanto. I like it very much, and especially its title, because it brilliantly summarizes our human, visceral call, without discrimination, to become knowledgable and broaden everyone's personal world. The invitation actually means learn (and enjoy)! Therefore, I greet the team: be proud!

Luigia Oberrauch Madella (Italy): Dear collaborators at lernu.net! I am joyful that you exist at all, and have not lost the inclination to work for us. Your ideas and their realization are truly important for us teachers across the whole world. With much thanks to everyone, greetings from Luigia Oberrauch Madella from Parma, the city of this year's ILEI Conference.

Adonis Saliba (Brazil): A really wonderful system to teach Esperanto to internet users! In fact, someone should immediately spread the information about this method through our internet lists and encourage people to get to know this internet method. Esperanto is already a great social phenomenon, aside from the linguistic aspects, and Esperanto speakers, like the team of this enterprise, are true magicians of our movement. Thank you for your existence!

Felicx (Esperanto-land): Hi! I just looked at the new lernu! for the first time, and I really like it, abundant courses on very interesting topics. Perhaps I will still do the course on the questions of life :-) Keep up with the good work!

James (Australia): Lernu.net is my favourite Esperanto website. Seriously, thanks to it, my Esperanto is improving every day. Your courses are too fun, and I like the computer vocabulary - it means that Esperanto is a living language, and not dead, as many people tell me. The only thing that I don't like is that your dictionaries have many neologisms (hati, mava, etc). I don't like neologisms; in my opinion, they sully the language. But that's me, and I won't complain anymore :p I thank you again.

More opinions from users can be found in the guestbook: http://www.lernu.net/pri_lernu/gastlibro.php.