Case Studies:

 Aciego, Garcia, and Betancort (2012):   https://www.cambridge.org/core/journals/spanish-journal-of-psychology/article/abs/benefits-of-chess-for-the-intellectual-and-socialemotional-enrichment-in-schoolchildren/9BAE7D7E2A9D7587C0259F7E964E5CF9

Aydin (2015):   https://academicjournals.org/journal/ERR/article-full-text/64BFA2151930

Barrett and Fish (2011):  https://eric.ed.gov/?id=EJ959011

Christiaen and Verhofstadt-Denève (1981):   https://psycnet.apa.org/record/1982-24351-001

Gliga and Flesner (2014):  https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1877042814003450

Hong and Bart (2007):  https://www.proquest.com/openview/aeb7c51dfcd0cb03ff505149f6c5ab76/1?pq-origsite=gscholar&cbl=18750&diss=y

Kazemi et al. (2012):  https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1877042812000572

Sala et al. (2015):  https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/full/10.1177/2158244015596050

Scholz et al. (2008):  https://eric.ed.gov/?id=EJ833690

Sigirtmac (2012):  https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/03004430.2011.582951

Celone (2001):  https://chessedu.org/wp-content/uploads/ChessThesis.pdf

Nanu et al. (2023):  https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC10330813/

Sala, Foley, & Gobet (2017):  https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC5322219/

* It is important to note that the case studies varied in their range of testing from sample size to the duration of chess instruction, to the quality of teaching, to the child’s starting age, to how far the students progressed (e.g., did they advance beyond the novice level, did they reach a level where critical and creative thinking were often present, etc.). The differences in testing methods should be considered when analyzing results.

Through personal observation of 20+ years of teaching, my perspective is that chess can be a helpful supplement to a child’s education through its development of critical and creative thinking. It can also get kids excited about learning and help them gain confidence, which can spill over to other academic areas.