than three, and specialization should begin no later than six. Although the
exact extent to which learning becomes harder as we age is unclear, there is
evidence from fields such as music and languages that children’s brains are
more plastic and flexible when younger. László took this idea to the extreme,
encouraging training far earlier than is typical for early-childhood education.
The second step is to specialize. Although the Polgár sisters did learn
languages, mathematics, sports, and other subjects, their focus was always on
chess. László noted that “starting from 4–5 they played chess 5 or 6 hours a
day.”
12
That specialization seems to have had two roles in his strategy for
raising geniuses. The first is that it took advantage of any hypothetical
flexibility that younger children possess to learn new subjects easily. The
second is that by specializing in one subject, the children could reach
proficiency at a much younger age. Winning against older and more
experienced opponents in chess built their confidence and competitive spirit,
so that they actively wanted to practice more to improve themselves. Had the
girls spread their intellectual appetites too broadly, they might not have
developed the self-confidence that leads to intense practice.
The third step was to make practice into play. Chess, being a game, is
naturally suited to play. However, László was insistent on introducing all
subjects to the girls as forms of play. When the girls would become distracted
or get up and wander around while playing a game, they weren’t punished
but encouraged to let their minds wander as they sought a solution. Keeping
the game fun and light, especially when the children were young, was a key
stepping-stone to developing the drive and self-confidence that would
support
more serious efforts later. However, it is important to keep in mind as László
insisted that “play is not the opposite of work” and “a child does not need
play separate from work, but meaningful action,” adding “learning presents
them with more enjoyment than a sterile game.”
13
Play
and work combined in
the Polgárs’ approach
to learning, with no rigid boundary between them.
Fourth, László was careful to create positive reinforcement to make chess a
pleasant, rather than frustrating, experience. “Failure, suffering, and
fearfulness decrease achievement. Following a number of successive failures,
even a damaging inhibitory complex can be created,” he explained.
14
Starting
with the behaviorists, psychologists have known in detail that having a
positive experience, such as winning a game, can create a desire to repeat the
behaviors that led to the experience. Negative experiences, from losing,
becoming confused, or experiencing frustration against a stronger opponent
to facing an opponent who is too easy and robs the player of the satisfaction
of pulling off an impressive victory, reduce enthusiasm. László carefully
established the cycles of positive feedback early on. In the beginning, when
he was still a stronger player than the girls, he would adjust his play so that
they would be challenged but still win enough of the time to find the game
enjoyable. “We should make sure not to always win against the child; we
should let them win sometimes so that they feel they are also capable of
thinking,” he wrote, adding “At the start it is most important to awake
interest. . . . We should get the child to love what they do—to such a degree
that they do it almost obsessively.”
15
Finally, László was entirely against coercing learning. Self-discipline,
motivation, and commitment, he felt, must come from the girls themselves.
He explained, “One thing is certain: one can never achieve serious
pedagogical results, especially at a high level, through coercion.”
16
He also
felt that “one of the most important educational tasks is to teach self-
education.”
17
This final step of his process was particularly important for his
daughters, as they quickly outpaced their father’s ability. Had they not been
encouraged to develop their own abilities to teach themselves and adjust their
learning, they might have become decent chess players but certainly not
grand masters.
In addition to these basic principles, László and Klára devoted themselves
intensely to providing every opportunity for the advancement of their
daughters, cultivating a database of more than two hundred thousand
matches, buying every chess textbook they could find, and recruiting chess
tutors for their daughters. The girls lacked no opportunity to study and
improve at the game. The Polgár house, with diagrams of chess positions
hanging on the walls, became a temple devoted to the practice of the ancient
game. For László and Klára, raising their children was more than a full-time
job as they fostered the girls’ talents by both assembling resources and
schooling them at home.
Do'stlaringiz bilan baham: 
