view all news, press, & insights Scholastic chess club participation and the academic achievement of Hispanic fifth grade students in south Texas. Table of contents March 31 2016 Research by Garcia, N.V.; Unpublished doctoral dissertation, University of Houston. on 2008 Conducted during the 2006-2007 school year, this dissertation evaluated the impact of a weekly after-school chess club intervention on Hispanic students’ performance on the reading and math sections of the Texas Assessment of Knowledge and Skills (TAKS). The author randomly selected 27 treatment students from a pool of chess club students across five different elementary schools in a predominantly Hispanic district in Texas; 27 control group students were selected from the same schools. Treatment students self-selected to participate in the chess club, and control students did not play chess—it is unknown if control students participated in any other after-school activity. Using ANCOVA, the study found an effect size of 1.455 standard deviation units in math and 1.436 standard deviations in reading. The results were statistically significant. The study was eligible for inclusion in the systematic literature review and categorized as a Tier III study. The sampling technique does not qualify as random assignment, because students self-selected to participant in the intervention. If there are systematic differences in student characteristics between the two groups, results may be biased. The study focuses on Hispanic students which limits its generalizability to other student populations. Download PDF Related CHESS NEWS prev next Research The significance of playing chess in improving a child’s intellectual actualisation. Read the Article Research An investigation into whether learning to play chess at a young age increases cognitive ability. Read the Article Research The effect of playing chess on the mathematics achievement of primary school learners in two schools in KZN Read the Article Research The effect of learning to play chess on cognitive, perceptual and emotional development in children. Read the Article Research Chess for Success evaluation: Final report Read the Article Research Can chess training improve Pisa scores in mathematics? An experiment in Italian primary schools. Read the Article Research Does the playing of chess lead to improved scholastic achievement? Read the Article Research Does chess training affect conceptual development of six-year-old children in Turkey? Read the Article Research Impact of chess training on mathematical performance and concentration ability of children with learning disabilities Read the Article Research Does playing chess improve math learning? Promising (and inexpensive) results from Italy Read the Article