09-08-2014, 11:59 AM
Interesting read through the comments but I have some points I would like to make.
How come parents are willing to pay out hefty fees for music lessons, martial arts, swimming etc but not for chess?
There is something missing somewhere. There doesn't seem to be any recognition in chess. Like wow you have been selected to play chess for Scotland! Think of the buzz in Glasgow & in the media for the Commonwealth games but what did we see or hear about the commonwealth chess championships? We didn't even get told which Scottish juniors had been selected to play. Is it perceived as 'just a game'' & has no more value than tiddlywinks? I don't have any answers..... Just saying.
Referring back to an old post of mine...... Donna as IJD ran junior squad coaching days. A fee was charged to be part of the Junior Squad (£20) I think. I assume the fee covered the cost of venue & coach expenses. We know Hamilton used to run coaching days & although excellent coaches are there the take up tended to be from the lower graded juniors.
Perhaps if there were willing organisers & coaches who would commit to it there could be say three National Junior coaching days organised but run in three different areas. Ie: Glasgow, Edinbugh, Perth. A fee charged individually but anyone wishing to commit to all 3 would be discounted. It could even be promoted as a variant of the junior CS membership. Instead of magazine membership it could be junior squad membership. (To make it more attractive to the junior not the parents wallet it could include tshirt & cs items including training books & score pad). Would it work? I don't know. If I'm honest I don't think there is enough commitment from the juniors & there is such a thin line of making the game a chore rather than fun.
It is true juniors would benefit from talks as presented by Richard at Paisley. I happened to be there last week & there was only one junior in attendance. This was free, well presented & ideal pace for all levels but only one junior??? So maybe more thought needs to go into junior set up as a whole because if they were interested in receiving coaching why aren't the local ones attending these type of sessions? Maybe they are not getting the right advice or getting communications about them, maybe they don't want to take the game that seriously.bAs the notice board is mostly closed off maybe these events should get better promotion on the home page with more info & guidance so parents know that it might benefit their child.
I agree with a lot that has been said in this thread regarding the Stokes team but also Liverpool where England especially don't put out their best juniors. Scotand under 12's have always been the under dogs within the four nations. Is it right to expose those juniors to that level? Does it help their game? Or does it put them off? I guess a bit of both depending on the child.
I think this subject needs more than a notice board thread to discuss. Perhaps the junior board could take it forward.
Footnote: SJC aim & purpose is to provide events for juniors from grassroots. It has never been the purpose to expand to junior international level. When the junior outgrows Chess for Kicks they should already be playing in the main congresses. Although we do have a couple of events that are open & suitable for all juniors.
How come parents are willing to pay out hefty fees for music lessons, martial arts, swimming etc but not for chess?
There is something missing somewhere. There doesn't seem to be any recognition in chess. Like wow you have been selected to play chess for Scotland! Think of the buzz in Glasgow & in the media for the Commonwealth games but what did we see or hear about the commonwealth chess championships? We didn't even get told which Scottish juniors had been selected to play. Is it perceived as 'just a game'' & has no more value than tiddlywinks? I don't have any answers..... Just saying.
Referring back to an old post of mine...... Donna as IJD ran junior squad coaching days. A fee was charged to be part of the Junior Squad (£20) I think. I assume the fee covered the cost of venue & coach expenses. We know Hamilton used to run coaching days & although excellent coaches are there the take up tended to be from the lower graded juniors.
Perhaps if there were willing organisers & coaches who would commit to it there could be say three National Junior coaching days organised but run in three different areas. Ie: Glasgow, Edinbugh, Perth. A fee charged individually but anyone wishing to commit to all 3 would be discounted. It could even be promoted as a variant of the junior CS membership. Instead of magazine membership it could be junior squad membership. (To make it more attractive to the junior not the parents wallet it could include tshirt & cs items including training books & score pad). Would it work? I don't know. If I'm honest I don't think there is enough commitment from the juniors & there is such a thin line of making the game a chore rather than fun.
It is true juniors would benefit from talks as presented by Richard at Paisley. I happened to be there last week & there was only one junior in attendance. This was free, well presented & ideal pace for all levels but only one junior??? So maybe more thought needs to go into junior set up as a whole because if they were interested in receiving coaching why aren't the local ones attending these type of sessions? Maybe they are not getting the right advice or getting communications about them, maybe they don't want to take the game that seriously.bAs the notice board is mostly closed off maybe these events should get better promotion on the home page with more info & guidance so parents know that it might benefit their child.
I agree with a lot that has been said in this thread regarding the Stokes team but also Liverpool where England especially don't put out their best juniors. Scotand under 12's have always been the under dogs within the four nations. Is it right to expose those juniors to that level? Does it help their game? Or does it put them off? I guess a bit of both depending on the child.
I think this subject needs more than a notice board thread to discuss. Perhaps the junior board could take it forward.
Footnote: SJC aim & purpose is to provide events for juniors from grassroots. It has never been the purpose to expand to junior international level. When the junior outgrows Chess for Kicks they should already be playing in the main congresses. Although we do have a couple of events that are open & suitable for all juniors.