compulsory chess....

[R1Geezer]

would it help here?
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/magazine-13140772

[Lonnie]

It wouldn't be a bad thing, I play, used to play in the Ilford and Basildon league's.

It does make you think, pre plan etc, and gives you mental self discipline.

[Booldawg]

what about Othello or Rummikub? This is nothing more than board game Nazism.

[rojash]

Raymond Keene says "Chess draws from brain power, not experience".

Bollux. Most enthusiastic chess players spend most of their time learning other players moves off by heart. Speed chess may take brain power, but "normal" chess is mostly about rote learning.

[steg]

i was school chess champion 3 years in a row, still left with no qualifications tho

[wolf63]

I read of an autistic boy who played chess to a high level - couldn't read or write but he could play chess.

I find playing draughts complicated and failed miserably when I tried to learn chess. To make strategic moves whilst trying to remember which direction each piece could go in was just too much for me.

[VHG]

You cant "make" someone play chess.

Anyway, many of our kids today wont even take any interest in maths and english so you are not likely to get them to play chess.

This type of thing only works in countries wth strong or dictatorship goverments like the old East Germany and Russia or in China (or Armenia).