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Friday, November 9, 2012
Chess helping Kids improve School Results in South Africa
Chess blog for latest chess news and chess trivia (c) Alexandra Kosteniuk, 2012
Hi everyone,
Here is an article based on the Moves for Life chess experiments and training with children in Africa.
"Two years ago, a chess trust was established in Pretoria to bring chess to children across the country. The programme is called Moves for Life (MFL), and I am one of the MFL trustees. The project has spread steadily and we are now proud of the fact that 20 000 children attend our weekly chess classes. We have trained over 300 teachers, and now have chess in schools from Richards Bay to Nkandla, Cape Town, Pretoria, Midrand, Hotazel, Balfour and more. This programme comprises components that address the needs of children, covering the entire spectrum from preschool to matric," says Dr Kemm, a nuclear physicist, CEO of Stratek Business Strategy Consultants.
New Chess Club in Khayelitsha, Cape Town - Cool Video
Chess blog for latest chess news and chess trivia (c) Alexandra Kosteniuk, 2012
Hi everyone,
Moves for Life
A new chess playing always excites us as we imagine how many more people are going to enjoy chess for the rest of their life and what fun they will have sharing and playing chess.
Cape Town just got a chess club! Former world chess champion Garry Kasparov had visited the Khayelitsha hall a few months back and such was the interest he sparked that a chess club has been inaugurated at the OR Tambo Sports Hall just outside Cape Town, South Africa.
Within two weeks of its launch the club had 30 members and is still going strong. This video was filmed on a cellphone by Lisa Chait who attended the launch and was so moved she felt she had to record it. For more information and to find out how you can support this great chess development initiative please contact Ronel or Hannes Pieterse from 'Moves for Life': ronelpieterse10@gmail.com. To find out more about Lisa's work please visit www.lifestories.co.za and www.iamwomanseries.com.
Announcing their sponsorship of the Khayelitsha Chess Club, Moiketsi Sebotsa, Head of Business Optimization at iWYZE says that during an earlier iWYZE-sponsored Kasparov event, they realized that chess has the power to change children's lives.
"We watched the kids playing chess at the OR Tambo community centre in Khayelitsha and the passion for the game was evident."
In March, iWYZE sponsored a visit to Khayelitsha by Garry Kasparov, organized by Moves for Life – an organization involved in the promotion of chess as education support intervention.
Using Chess to Unlock Children’s Latent Intellectual Potential in South Africa
Chess blog for latest chess news and chess trivia (c) Alexandra Kosteniuk, 2012
Hi everyone,
We feel absolutely delighted when chess makes it to the front page or cover story in mainstream media. Here is the latest:
Chess has made it to the cover of Engineering News in South Africa with a special article exploring chess in education.
The Moves for Life (MFL) programme aims to unlock children’s latent intellectual potential through structured exposure to the game of chess – which stimulates the same analytical cerebral functions as academic subjects such as maths and science – and ultimately improve the national performance in these areas.
“Chess essentially rewires the brain, encouraging one to think in a far more logical fashion. It is not just a game,” explains nuclear physicist and MFL cofounder Kelvin Kemm.
He points out that it provides rich, early-age ‘brain training’, and encourages an understanding of concepts such as instantaneous feedback, problem solving, planning and anticipation, and emphasises that the earlier these thinking skills are stimulated, the better.
MFL cofounder Marisa van der Merwe, a long-time chess tutor and developer of MFL’s junior programme, MiniChess, adds that it is critical to expose children at the earliest possible age.
“Many children in South Africa who come from underprivileged homes are not stimulated and, as a result, the necessary brain development does not take place. This programme will eliminate the issue of children who are not mentally prepared to deal with the start of their academic career,” she says.
The MFL programme, which has been implemented at more than 70 schools across the country since its inception in 2010, hosts over 11 000 children each week and has also produced some unexpected results.
“The most surprising upshot of this process is the degree to which the children’s self-confidence has improved, because, for some of them, this is the first time they feel capable of learning and sense that they are part of a group,” explains MFL cofounderMickey Scheepers. The legendary Garry Kasparov is a great supporter of this programme. Read the full article on chess in education in South Africa here.
Cool human chess video of Gary Kasparov playing with African television personality
Chess blog for latest chess news and chess trivia (c) Alexandra Kosteniuk, 2011
Hello everyone,
Here is a nice human chess video of chess great Gary Kasparov's recent visit to Africa as part of a Moves for Life campaign. The 13th world chess champion played the game with radio and television personality Wackhead Simpson. Enjoy.
Chess blog for latest chess news and chess trivia (c) Alexandra Kosteniuk, 2011
Hi everyone,
Chess great Garry Kasparov watches Grade 6 pupils at the Zamintuthuko Primary School in Mamelodi make their moves with the educational project Moves for Life. Photo: Thobile Mathonsi.
We found this nice article on chess great Garry Kasparov's visit to South Africa. The chess legend visited Zamintuthuko Primary School in Mamelodi and Hoërskool Waterkloof as part of his partnership with a Pretoria-based chess educational project, Moves For Life (MFL).
Kasparov’s visit to the country is to link his Kasparov Chess Foundation to MFL to extend the successful MFL formula to other African countries.MFL was launched nationwide last year and has expanded to over 50 schools across the country.
Principal Matome Ramokhufi said the pupils had already shown improvements in their level of concentration in class.“The project also assists in the pupils’ level of critical thinking as chess helps them to think outside the box.“We are already seeing improvements in their work in maths and science.”
Ramokhufi said before the project was implemented at the school, teachers had realised that pupils did not always follow the rules and steps of problem solving in maths and science.
May all the kids of the world learn chess - that's our fond wish. If your school or local club is running a chess programme, do share your activities with Chess Blog.
Chess news and chess trivia blog (c) Alexandra Kosteniuk, 2010
President Zuma with 12-year-old Sifiso as part of a 'Moves for Life' event.
Hi Everybody,
Here is a nice story from Africa. Twelve-year-old Sifiso Mashazi beat President Jacob Zuma of South Africa during an intense chess game in a small rural town of Nkandla!
The 2010 JZ Chess Tournament, sponsored by the Moves for Life trust of which Zuma is patron, was held at Nkandla municipal hall yesterday. Zuma, who is an avid chess player and also one of the promoters of chess in rural areas, eventually surrendered to Sifiso’s crafty moves.
Sifiso seemed oblivious to the cameras and tensions around him and Zuma. He focused and gave the president a chance to make his moves. During the game Zuma was heard to mutter “sekushubile impela” (it is now getting tough).
Sifiso never looked up during the game, and only gave a big smile when Zuma finally surrendered. “I am really happy. It was a very serious game to me, but I was not scared.”
Sifiso said his love for chess started at an early age. “I finally got my first chess set from my aunt who knew the love I had for this sport. I was very happy and have been practising almost every day.” A Grade 5 pupil, Sifiso said he would never forget the day he beat his president. “I just wish my school had a chess set so I could teach all the other boys at school.”
On Zuma’s arrival, children, teenagers and their parents jostled and pushed to get a picture of him as he moved from table to table, chatting to the players and assessing the different states of play.
“Chess, just like any other game, is very important. It has been scientifically proven the sport can enhance the mind, and this is exactly what we need for the young people,” said President Zuma.
Special gift for South African children: President Zuma supports chess
Chess news and chess trivia blog (c) Alexandra Kosteniuk, 2010
The President with members of Chessa and FIDE. Back row: Lynne van Rensburg (CHESSA Secretary), Lyndon Bouah (CHESSA Vice President), Lewis Ncube (FIDE Vice President); front row: Brian Aitchison (CHESSA Executive Director), Emelia Ellappen (CHESSA President), President Jacob Zuma (President of South Africa), Ali Nihat Yazici (FIDE Vice President, FIDE Chess in Schools Commission President and Turkish Chess Federation President).
Hi Everyone,
It's always great to know when people in public life promote chess. It feels awesome to know when the President of a country steps up to promote chess among children. This is surely one of President Jacob Zuma's most notable contributions to South Africa.
President Zuma announced his support and recognition of chess as a problem-solving training activity on October 26. He highlighted the cognitive development and advancement in ability as some of the gains that young learners will derive from chess and gave a most fantastic speech on chess.
He said, "It is an important game in many aspects, the main benefit being that it contributes to the development of strategic thinking as well as concentration, analytical skills and problem solving.”
He was speaking at a function for the Moves for Life programme, which he commended for being uniquely South African.
The Moves for Life chess programme was officially launched at a gala dinner with captains of industry, politicians, educationists and other eminent citizens pledging to bring chess to the children of South Africa.
President Zuma said:
In summary, the benefits that accumulate from the teaching and promotion of chess in schools include the following:
The game teaches patience. You have to give the opponent time and space to think and make his or her own move.
It teaches that a decision must be an outcome of a serious thought process.
Chess teaches discipline, for example as chess players would know, “touch is a move”. When you touch, you must move, you have to be disciplined.
Chess teaches fairness. You alert the opponent before you strike, and keep them informed of your moves and intentions.
This growing support for chess around the world is great. Remember our previous post about the President of Azerbaijan also supporting chess? How cool!
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Best chess wishes to you! Alexandra Kosteniuk
12th Women's World Chess Champion
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