© 2007 Milton N. Bradley

Although it might seem that the time and effort expended on Go constitutes a distraction from academic work, there is much anecdotal evidence indicating that the students who play Go regularly actually outperform their non-Go playing peers. In fact, a 7 year study conducted by the Japanese Education Ministry showed that STUDENTS WHO WERE MEMBERS OF THEIR JUNIOR AND SENIOR HIGH SCHOOL GO CLUBS ARE TWICE AS SUCCESSFUL IN GAINING ENTRY INTO THEIR PRESTIGIOUS NATIONAL UNIVERSITIES (the equivalent of our Ivy League colleges) AS ALL OTHERS!

In the same manner that progressive weight training complements specific sport skill training, Go complements the standard school academic curriculum, filling in the gaps in the student's thinking processes left by its emphasis on the rote memorization of facts and the manipulation of pat formulas. This effect is further enhanced by Go's unique integration of both left brain (analytic) and right brain (artistic) capabilities in a developmental way that is unmatched by any other known human activity!

Many young people "resist to the death" when school and parents attempt to induce them to pay attention to formal classroom instruction and (even worse) devote hours of their personal time to homework. In sharp contrast, even indifferent/sub-par students who become caught up in the fascination of Go's exquisite subtlety, incisive tactics and profound strategy, willingly engage in prodigies of intense over-the-board concentration, and expend untold hours of study to improve their playing skills and understanding. They do so because it is FUN, and in the process they not only restructure their brains but also develop habits of study and concentration which then carry over with salutary effect into their academic and real life interfaces.

Does this actually work? Or is it just a pleasant sounding theory? As noted above there are no hard statistics to definitively support its efficacy, but among the vast amount of anecdotal evidence I found the following to be especially persuasive - and I expect that you will be similarly impressed:

"I can honestly say that I have learnt more about how to conduct my life from Go than from any other intellectual pursuit." Stephen G. Fawthrop, Ph.D., Math. & Stat. Department, Radford University, Radford, VA 24091, 540-831-6096.

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