What the research says, both ways.

A 2016 review of 24 studies found a moderate average benefit of chess instruction (g = 0.338), larger for mathematics than for reading. The same review found larger effects with longer instruction, and none of its studies used an ideal design.

A 2017 Danish study found gains in mathematics test scores when one weekly mathematics lesson in grades 1 to 3 was taught through chess.

A large 2018 randomized trial in England that taught chess as a stand-alone subject found no change in test scores.

We do not claim chess raises grades; the research points both ways. So the method does not wait for chess to turn into math on its own: every chapter ends with a lab that makes the math explicit.

Standards and New York's graduate attributes

Each lab ends with a footer naming the New York State mathematics or computer-science standard it practices. New York's Board of Regents adopted six attributes for every graduate in July 2025. The New York State Education Department's own page of 31 July 2025 reports that the Board of Regents adopted them in July 2025. The rubrics and reports name six attributes: Academically Prepared, Creative Innovator, Critical Thinker, Effective Communicator, Global Citizen, and Reflective and Future Focused. The Eight Ranks Method is designed to produce evidence aligned to the six attributes of the New York State Portrait of a Graduate.

Practicing a standard is not the same as mastering it, and we do not claim mastery.

Sources

1. Sala, G., and Gobet, F. (2016). Do the benefits of chess instruction transfer to academic and cognitive skills? A meta-analysis. Educational Research Review, 18, 46–57. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.edurev.2016.02.002
2. Rosholm, M., Mikkelsen, M. B., and Gumede, K. (2017). Your move: The effect of chess on mathematics test scores. PLOS ONE, 12(5), e0177257. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0177257
3. Jerrim, J., Macmillan, L., Micklewright, J., Sawtell, M., and Wiggins, M. (2018). Does teaching children how to play cognitively demanding games improve their educational attainment? Evidence from a randomized controlled trial of chess instruction in England. Journal of Human Resources, 53(4), 993–1021. The trial was run for the Education Endowment Foundation (Chess in Schools: Evaluation Report and Executive Summary). https://doi.org/10.3368/jhr.53.4.0516-7952R
4. New York State Education Department (31 July 2025). New York State Portrait of a Graduate. https://www.nysed.gov/standards-instruction/news/new-york-state-portrait-graduate
5. Chitiyo, M., and Atkins, R. (August 2026). The 2026 FIDE Global Chess in Schools Survey, pp. 32 and 37. The findings are the authors' own.