Our friends from Australia just brought us this wonderful news about chess and education over there:
Students at Maryborough Education Centre, in the Goldfields Region of Central Victoria (Australia), are fast becoming proficient chess players.
Harry Poulton from Castlemaine Chess Club worked with Well-Being Officer Marg Gallagher to adapt the Chess-Squared Program to Years 3-4-5-6 students at Maryborough Education Centre, and the results were immediate.
Gallagher said: ‘The level of interest of even the youngest students has been astonishing and their skills acquisition has been most impressive. Chess builds resilience and supports students in important learning areas such as Mathematics and Wellbeing.’’
Many students have displayed excellent organisation and planning skills in a short space of time and their enthusiasm for the game has been sustained.’ Poulton observed: “It seems the MEC has a commitment to combining innovation and pastoral care into all programs to deliver quality education to students with diverse needs.”
Poulton has noted a direct relationship with the level of support from the classroom teacher and the success of the program in all schools he has worked in.
The success, it seems, isnt just having a classroom tutor. Teachers with the right attitude seem to increase student levels of engagement and attitudes to learning.
With help from the parents club, the school has recently acquired two large chess sets which are in great demand as a playground activity.
Kudos to the Australian. What has the USCF done to help chess and education? What have Goichberg and his buddies done?
what a wonderful initiative.
why aren’t all the schools like this?