2 replies to this topic

[Aratta-Kingdom]

National Post

by Michael Fraiman

Armenia is make chess classes compulsory for children as young as six in a bid to become a chess superpower.

The country in the South Caucasus region plans to invest nearly US$1.5-million into teaching chess to primary schoolchildren. In addition to salaries, the investment will fund textbooks, manuals and boards, as well as proper tables and chairs to outfit the schools, the Armenian education minister announced.

The minister claims chess will "foster schoolchildren's intellectual development" and improve children's critical-thinking skills.

"It's a growing trend," according to Ted Winick, president of the Chess Institute of Canada, who also teaches chess to children of Toronto.

Mr. Winick belives North American schools should "absolutely" adopt Armenia's policy, citing various Soviet countries, as well as Cuba and Quebec, as examples of the game being successfully integrated into various public curriculum levels, though not as a mandatory class.

Armenia's decision was made just two months after Armenian President Serzh Sargsyan was re-elected as chair of the Armenian Chess Federation, a position he's held since 2002. Mr. Sargsyan is known for enthusiastically supporting Armenia chess players, who have won the country two gold medals at the biennial Chess Olympiad competition, in 2006 and 2008.

World Chess Federation rands Armenia as the fourth best chess playing country in the world.

"If you walk into a village coffee shop in an Armenian town, you will see people are playing chess, not card games or other things," said Mig Migidrdichyan, chairman of the Hayastan Foundation, A toronto based charity that builds schools in Armenia.


"This is very much in their brain."

Dr. Mark Sabbagh, a professor of developmental psychology at Queen's University and associate editor of the Developmental Psychology Journal, said chess could improve a child's "executive functioning" skills - things such as future planning and self inhibition.

[Sip]

I read that on the news yesterday and couldn't believe this stupidity! Chess? Really? Reminds me of the hours and hours and hours I spent growing up copying chapters out of books and learning "cursive" writing ... what a completely ridiculous waste of time that was. ... and now they are going to waste the kids' time with this?

At least in the defense of my teachers, they didn't know at the time that computers would be a lot better at copying chapters, writing, and even "cursive" than we humans. But teaching kids Chess? Why? What is our obsession with this game?

Don't get me wrong though .. I think Chess is a great extra curricular activity and hobby. And sure, even competitive chess can have its advantages. But there are many other things that can help these kids in life instead of forcing them into chess.

Edited by Sip, 20 April 2011 - 01:14 AM.

[Zartonk]

I think something like one class won't hurt, just to understand the basic logic of the game.