KHACHATUR ABOVYAN ARMENIAN STATE PEDAGOGICAL UNIVERSITY

The second international conference entitled “Theoretical and Practical Issues of Chess Education in Schools” took place in Tsaghkadzor, a popular resort town in Armenia, on October 1-2. The event was organized by the Chess Academy of Armenia, Ministry of Education and Science of the Republic of Armenia, Armenian State Pedagogical University (ASPU), World Chess Federation (Fédération Internationale des Echecs – FIDE) and Chess Federation of Armenia.

Armenia’s Minister of Education and Science Levon Mkrtchyan, ASPU Rector Ruben Mirzakhanyan, President of the European Chess Union Zurab Azmaiparashvili and about 50 representatives from some 20 countries, who are interested in Armenia's chess teaching knowhow, participated in the conference.

In his opening speech, Mr. Smbat Lputyan, Head of the Chair of Chess and Sports, Vice-President of the Armenian Chess Federation and Founding President of the Chess Academy of Armenia, said 'Armenia’s experience in chess interests the entire world, and the conference participants are eager to apply it in their countries.'

Mr. Lputyan also expressed hope that the psychologists, sociologists and educators participating in the conference would present their observations and proposals. He said the fact that the conference was being held for the second time was due to the opening of the Chess Research Laboratory at the ASPU and stressed the need to disseminate the results of the work and research carried out in the laboratory.

ASPU Rector Ruben Mirzakhanyan highlighted the joint work of the University and its partners, considering achievements in chess the result of joint work. He also presented the activities and achievements of the ASPU Chair of Chess and Sports and Chess Research Laboratory in disseminating and popularizing chess in the education sector.

During the two-day conference, ASPU lecturers and researchers of the Chess Research Laboratory presented [in their reports] the results of the two-year activity of the Centre, research and studies, the work carried out by the Chair, as well as analysis of the effectiveness of chess teaching and problems encountered with the academic discipline in the inclusive education system.

We should mention that during the discussions both FIDE and European partners viewed the Pedagogical University as a key partner: ASPU’s experience and views were taken into consideration every time when a problem aroused. In their speeches, the foreign colleagues stressed that the Pedagogical University is the only university in the world, which provides deep and interactive chess teaching and thoroughly studies all chess-relates issues.

“Our experience can serve as a real guideline for everyone [interested in chess] because during the two-day conference the participants presented specific data, definite figures and examples, as well as results of extensive research conducted in the capital and regions,” Vahan Sargsyan, Head of the Chess Research Laboratory, said in conversation with old.aspu.am. He added that during the conference they reached agreements to popularize and publish research.

Mr. Sargsyan said that different European groups had promised to carry out joint research in the international arena in the near future, considering Armenia’s experience of training chess teachers and introducing chess in the system of higher education. There were also proposals to make presentations and reports at international conferences and enter the international printing platform.