Examination of the 2019 chess teaching program in accordance with the opinions of chess coaches, preschool teachers and preschool education experts

In the preschool period, children's learning speed is at the highest level. During this period, physical and mental games are very important for the development of children. One of the mental games that make a significant contribution to the development of children is chess. The important contributions of chess education to the development of children have enabled some societies to include chess as a lesson in their programs. This study reveals the opinions of chess coaches, preschool teachers and preschool education experts to evaluate the Preschool Chess Teaching Program published in 2019 for the preschool period. This research has been designed in the basic qualitative research model. Participants of the study consist of 115 people including chess coaches, preschool teachers and preschool education experts. The data of the study were collected through semi-structured interviews. Descriptive analysis method was used in the analysis of the interview data. Findings were expressed after analyzing the data. According to the findings obtained in the research, it was concluded that most of the participants stated that the special aims of the Chess Teaching Program were in accordance with the general objectives of preschool education. Participants generally stated that they thought of implementing the program. It was stated that the program was sufficient in teaching children chess rules. It was concluded that most of the participants stated that the topics and achievements determined in the program were appropriate for the levels of the children. Some participants stated that the program should be elaborated and organized. It was concluded that most of the participants stated that the problems that may be encountered during the implementation process of the program are aimed at children, and some of them stated that they may be problems arising from the teacher or the program. Keywords: Preschool period, Game, Chess education, Program, Evaluation