荔園小學舉辦深圳國際象棋特色學校比賽 The first Shenzhen Chess School Contest, which lasted for two days involving seven rounds, ended on November 24 at Liyuan Primary School, a pioneering school in chess education in Shenzhen. The contest, which attracted 260 students from 26 schools that have chess curriculum, was organized by Shenzhen Chess Academy, held by Liyuan Education Group and supported by Pengcheng Chess Club. Liyuan Primary School, Jian’an Primary School and Shenzhen Foreign Languages Primary School won the top three prizes. “Chess is more than an intellectual activity; it changes one’s way of thinking. Students who’re skilled in chess also do a wonderful job in school. As the first school to include chess education in its curriculum in Shenzhen, we will continue to promote chess education. This is why we initiated the contest, and we hope to make it a tradition in the city,” said Li Xinfeng, headmaster of the school. Chess education in Liyuan Primary School could be dated back to 1995. Since then, the school has cultivated quite a few municipal, provincial and national chess champions and chess masters for the International Chess Federation. According to Li Xinfeng, teachers and textbooks are the keys to long-term chess education at the school. In 1998, when the school began to offer chess courses to its young students, it employed Min Xing, a national chess coach, to be the instructor. In that role, Min edited a textbook for the students. With its easy-to-understand explanations and vivid images, the book quickly gained popularity. “Now we’re updating the textbook so that kids can learn in a more systematic way. In the future, we’ll be employing more professional teachers. I believe our chess courses will benefit more kids,” said Li. In the past 20 years, chess education has been thriving in Liyuan Primary School and other schools in Shenzhen as well. (Lin Lin) | 