By 2000, Maine hopes to enroll half of its 11th-graders in tech prep and college prep. It helps seniors secure a job and tracks them for nine months following employment. A growing number of teachers, administrators, parents, and researchers are touting the ancient game of chess as the ultimate teaching tool. That may help explain why the number of school-based chess programs has increased from 2,000 in 1990 to 30,000 today. Chess advocates assert that just as athletes lift weights to strengthen their bodies for sports, students can use chess to strengthen their minds for schoolwork.
Players analyze moves, plan ahead, solve problems, and devise strategies.
Research has revealed a link between chess playing and classroom performance. A 1979 study found that gifted children developed critical thinking skills faster and better while playing chess than while doing other activities, such as creative writing and computer programming. Enthusiasts for the game are quick to point out that, in addition to its academic benefits, chess can teach children social skills, such winning and losing gracefully. It can also help them ventilate their frustration in a safe environment. That appears to be why chess has caught on with many young people from troubled backgrounds.