Armenia's clever move: Compulsory chess classes for primary school pupils

Chess has been made compulsory for primary school pupils in Armenia.

Education chiefs in the chess-obsessed former Soviet nation have made the game part of the national curriculum for children between the ages of seven and nine.

The Armenian authorities say teaching chess in school is about building character rather than breeding champions.

"Taking the pastime into classrooms will help nurture a sense of responsibility and organization as well as serving as an example to the rest of the world", education minister Armen Ashotyan claimed.

"We hope that the Armenian teaching model might become among the best in the world," he said.