The ability to interpret, process and integrate incoming
(sensory) information allows us to act in and on the world.
Visual perceptual skills are the basic building blocks of all
functional activity; no human activity is performed without
the use of these skills. We call it chess visualization skills, or
board vision. All else follows from the visual input and its
processing.
Perceiving objects and spatial and functional relationships
between objects is fundamental to understanding visual environments. This is experienced internally; it is related to our
ability to recognize and construct patterns, which are nature’s
means of communicating and translating information. We
need to look at “patterns that connect” in order to realize the
secrets and meaning of things. The loss of pattern is the loss
of information.
Chess is a complex cognitive activity that rests on the recognition of chess objects, or pieces. The form of a chess piece
is not directly related to its function, but the form and function are firmly coupled through chess rules (e.g., how pieces
control the board and make movements). The functions are
then linked to actions, that is, movements associated with
pieces (such as executing a move).
The flawed traditional method of teaching
Let’s take a look now at the traditional method of teaching,
which starts with “showing the moves first”.
What does executing a move represent in the S>R model of
behavior? Just the end of a sequence, including the last opponent ’s move (the stimulus), understanding the context,
visual processing with pattern recognition, and decisionmaking.
Of course, the beginner is not supposed to get started with
all of it. Nevertheless, what we do when we start teaching
chess is that everything preceding the move execution is actually out of the picture; it’s been amputated. What is left is
just aimless woodpushing which sets up a detrimental habit
formation early in the learning process. When bad habits set
in, the understanding of the game, the enjoyment of it, a fast
learning curve, and future success are all likely to suffer.
Probability of giving up the game completely?―very high.
Neuropsychology and cognitive neuroscience findings
A research team led by Merim Bilalic at the University of
Tübingen in Germany used behavioral and neuro-imaging
techniques to uncover cognitive and neural mechanisms underlying skilled object recognition
(http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3025982/)
.
The main conclusion of the study is that expert chess players are faster than novices in identifying chess objects and
their functional relations. (Functions are roles pieces have
when contacts between them and the squares are established:
attack, support, block, etc. For more details go to my blog at
http://wp.me/p1BAmu-nH, section B). In particular, chess
masters are superior over novices when they have to retrieve a
piece function and relate it to other chess pieces.
Traditional vs Cont