Port Louis — Looking for a novel and exciting way to improve pupils' levels of competency in English or Maths? The Association for the Promotion of Chess (PEJ) has its own ideas about this. It is expecting more than 200 secondary students to take part in the competition to be held on 8th and 9th August at Loreto College Port-Louis. The record number of 230 pupils have already enrolled but the organisers are still waiting for regular participants like St Esprit, London College and Royal College of Curepipe to send in their names.

PEJ has been involved in the promotion of chess in schools since 2003 in view of the various pedagogical, social and academic benefits pupils could gain from it. "There has been a growing interest in chess from schools over the past few years. If private colleges were the first to show an interest in our project, state colleges are getting convinced now," says Ronald Raimbert, vice-president of the association. The Mahatma Gandhi Institute of Solferino was the first state college to ask for the collaboration of PEJ and this year, they have entered 20 pupils in the competition.

The first contest was launched in 2003 at London College. "We had 150 pupils who came out of curiosity. This is when we realised there could be an interest in the game and we made ourselves available for all those wanting some basic training," relates Ronald Raimbert. Since then, PEJ has become the technical partner of the Mauritius Secondary Schools Sports Association (MSSSA).

If the main role of PEJ up to now has been to train volunteers at school and organise competitions, it has another long-term objective. They would like a pilot-project to be launched in schools to include chess in the formal curriculum. A first step towards this project is their request to the ministries of Youth and Sports and Education to be given a hall at La Tour Koenig - and later in other schools - to create a chess club for pupils. They have not received any answer yet but they are happy to see how pupils enjoy playing chess.

"The game has changed my life"

"Basically, when they start playing, pupils enjoy it mainly because it is a game. But parents and teachers see other advantages in the fact that pupils practise it," comments Ronald Raimbert. "When I started to play 30 years ago, I was among those who enjoyed it as a game. But the game has changed my life."

Many studies overseas have indeed indicated the benefits of chess for students. They have shown that learning chess had a positive influence on the development of both numerical and verbal aptitudes. "The beauty of chess as a teaching tool is that it stimulates children's minds and helps them build these skills while enjoying themselves. As a result, children become more critical thinkers, better problem solvers and more independent decision makers," reveals one of those studies.

Drawing from his own experience, Ronald Raimbert believes chess has had a positive impact on him and taught him essential va-lues. "I have learned to analyse a situation in depth before taking any decision. I think it has also helped me better gauge the risks of any situation and be responsible for my actions."

But chess is also seen as a way of "bringing together children of different ages, races and genders in an activity they can all enjoy. Chess helps build individual friendships as well as school spirit when children compete together as teams against other schools. Chess also teaches children about sportsmanship - how to win gracefully and not give up when encountering defeat," says another study.

Many studies have been done in the United States and in Canada where chess has been introduced in the curriculum of some schools. A study on a large-scale chess programme in New York City, which involved more than 100 schools and 3,000 children, has shown higher classroom grades in both English and Maths for children involved in chess.

Hence, in those countries, chess is seen as an effective tea-ching tool. "It can equally challenge the minds of girls and boys, gifted and average, athletic and non-athletic, rich and poor. It can teach children the importance of planning and the consequences of decisions. It can further teach how to concentrate, how to win and lose gracefully, how to think logically and efficiently, and how to make tough and abstract decisions."

History

Chess is a classic game of strategy, invented more than 1,500 years ago in India. According to legend, the ruler of India asked his wise men to teach the children of the royal family to become better thinkers and better generals on the battlefield. This is how chess was born. And it has gradually extended to almost every country in the world.