Armenia Makes Chess a Mandatory School Subject

Armenia is a country mad for chess, having won a number of world chess competitions in recent years. Now, the country will impart a love of chess to the next generation, committing $1.43 million to an educational program that will see chess taught as a school curriculum subject for children six and above, who will study chess in classrooms for two hours per week.

While the country is framing the program in terms of Armenia’s world competitiveness in chess, it’s fair to expect that there will be broader educational benefits: Education ministry official Arman Aivazian said that chess lessons would “foster schoolchildren’s intellectual development” and teach students to “think flexibly and wisely.”

(news.com.au via Neatorama. pic via Shutterstock.)

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Robert Quigley