Using the Game of Baduk/Go/Wei-chi�to Teach Across the Disciplines
A game that is easy enough for a toddler to learn, but can be complex enough to stump a genius.
G. Yakman
Jinsoo Kim
ISETL 2007
What is Baduk/Go/Wei-chi?
Ancient Asian strategy game
Originally played only by royalty
Why Baduk/Go Stayed East
7th Century
1st Baduk Painting in Tibet
How the West Got Baduk/Go
10th Century Hnefatafl
Montanus
Compared to chess
Baduk/Go Schools
Collegiate Level
Middlebury – Huang & Schumer – (see syllabus)
Integrated STEM education
The concept of teaching across the disciplines of
with activities that cover content and application from each of the fields
Einstein with professional Baduk/Go player Fukuda Masayoshi.
What is STE@M Education
The concept of teaching across all the disciplines by formally tying the STEM disciplines to the Arts fields, including;
(Education, psych., phil., socio., etc…)
.
FUNctional Literacy
Teaching across the disciplines directly supports transference of knowledge.
Students not only learn to be literate in a singular (silo) field, but they become life-long learners who are much more capable of being functionally literate and advancing society.
AND IT’S MORE FUN & ENGAGING!
Science Relationships
Boards: Katsura wood
Stones: Slate, Shell, Glass, Plastic & Jade
Bowls: wood, woven & decorative
The number of possible games playable on this board has been reckoned to be more than the number of molecules in the universe.
Technology Relationships
Creativity
Strategy
Design
Materials and processes
Engineering Relationships
Excellent for;
Mathematics Relationships
Pattern recognition
Binary mathematics
Movie - Pi
360 intersections plus one.
* Arts relationships
History Ex: WWII Japanese strategy & US camps
Literature ex: compares the four quarters to the four seasons, the stones to night and day, the 361 intersections to the days of the year, and the center point on the board to the Pole Star - 17th C Japanese playwright, Chikamatsu – Graphic & Other Novels
Education Ex: Studying Baduk/Go is a wonderful way to develop both the creative as well as logical abilities because to play it both sides of the brain are necessary.
Cho Chikun, one of the three great prodigies in Go history - http://www.kiseido.com/
Philosophy Ex: The balance of Yin and Yang is the model for the equal division of the 360 stones into black and white. LaTour - ANT
From The Classic of Go, by Chang Nui - 11th C
Hold the stones between first and middle fingers, like chopsticks & snap them down on the board with a sharp click
The Art of Playing
The traditional Baduk/Go board has a 19-line grid. Beginners play on small 9 or 13-line boards.
Games
Goal: Create territory by surrounding open space
Built in handicap system – 9 points
Players take turns putting stones on the intersections
Black goes first
Begin Game
Playing Stones
Each intersection is a point of territory
Once a stone is put down it does not move unless it’s captured – Atari = Check
Each captured stone is also worth one point.
Ko- Repetition Rule
One may not play a move which repeats a previous board position.
Fenceposts & Walls
Claiming Territory
A safe group of stones must have two eyes
Living Groups
Game End: when all the walls defining the territory is taken, and there are no plays left to make.
Captured Stones: Are filled in
Counting: Pieces are moved
Game Over
Top 4:
Resources:
Most major US cities have Baduk/Go clubs.