Regulations for the Titles and Certifications of Chess in Education

FIDE Chess in Education Titles are awarded for life and can only be suspended or revoked by a decision of the FIDE Ethics & Disciplinary Commission or FIDE Council, while an EDU Licence is a certification by FIDE and EDU of current proficiency to teach at the indicated level of the awarded FIDE EDU title.

Chess in Education Titles when awarded include a three (3) year licence.

Renewal of the licence requires the completion of a renewal course. During the final six months of the validity of the licence, a title-holder may renew the licence for a further three year period to run from the end date of the current licence by following the normal procedure and paying the appropriate fees.

At any time after the expiration of the licence, a title holder may renew, just as any non-title holder, by following the relevant procedure to renew the licence.

All Chess in Education titles are only valid for the period for which they are issued and only Chess in Education Instructors with a valid licence may use the title awarded as an official certification.

1.       FIDE Lead School Instructor (LSI)

1.1     FIDE Lead School Instructors (LSI) lead the seminars for teachers.

1.2     The objective of the preparation of FIDE Lead School Instructors is to develop and enhance the skills of effective teaching of chess basics by using active and interactive teaching methods, digital tools, and positive professional communication skills.

1.3     Title award by successful completion of LSI seminar or a similar FIDE Certified course.

2.       FIDE Lead Preschool Instructor (LPSI)

2.1     FIDE Lead Preschool Instructors (LPSI) lead the seminars for teachers. The target age group for student instruction is 4-6 years old but this may vary by country.

2.2     The objective of the preparation of LPSI is to develop chess teaching skills based on the knowledge of the main features of age-level development via implementation of modern pedagogical methods/approaches and effective professional communication.

2.3     Title award by successful completion of LPSI seminar or a similar FIDE Certified chess in education course that meets the same requirements of the LPSI seminar.

3.       FIDE School Instructor (SI)

3.1     FIDE School Instructors introduce the school student to the basic chess rules to improve their educational and social level and to broaden the base of chess players worldwide.

3.2     Professional Skills & Requirements:

3.2.1     Teaching or will teach in a school with proficiencies in pedagogy and educational psychology.

3.2.2     Good knowledge of chess basics.

 3.3    Title Award: By successful participation in an EDU Seminar or by successful completion of a distance learning online course or a FIDE Certified course, in each case with a passing score in the examination.

4.       FIDE Preschool Instructor (PSI)

4.1     FIDE Preschool Instructors introduce the school student in the target age group of 4-6 years old (ages may vary by country) to prerequisite skills useful in chess to improve their educational and social level. For example, highlighted prerequisite skills may relate to STEM, art, and play, using gamification and psychomotricity.

4.2     Professional Skills & Requirements:

4.2.1     Teaching or will teach in a school or kindergarten with proficiencies in pedagogy and educational psychology related to the target age group.

4.2.2     Knowledge of the basic rules of chess.

4.3     Title Award: By successful participation in an EDU Seminar or by successful completion of a distance learning online course or a FIDE Certified course, in each case with a passing score in the examination.

5.       Procedures

5.1     Every individual must:

5.1.1     complete the appropriate REG form and email to the Senior Adviser for Chess in Education   (edu.secretary@fide.com).

5.1.2     Fees shall be applied following the FIDE financial rules.

5.2     Titles Financial

5.2.2     Payment shall be made directly to FIDE in compliance with the FIDE financial rules.

6.       SEMINARS

6.0     All seminars will usually be online.

6.1     FIDE School Instructor Seminars

6.1.1     Organizational Steps: A School Instructor Seminar shall be organized by EDU or by a chess body (Federation, Chess Club, Chess Academy or other Chess Organization) after the submission of an application form to the FIDE Chess in Education Commission and its approval. An application form that has not been completed in full will not be accepted. Application forms must be received by EDU at least 14 days before the seminar is due to take place. Once the course is approved, seminar publicity may begin. EDU will appoint or recommend LSI certified lecturers. The course announcement will be promoted through social media such as on the FIDE and EDU websites. Seminars will normally occupy 3 or 5 days (15 hours total). The seminar and the examination will be based on the FIDE School Instructor (SI) documents and other materials created by or recommended by the EDU Commission. The seminar evaluation will be done by examination. The examination results will be submitted by the Lead School Instructor(s) to EDU for approval. EDU will notify FIDE of the results and title certificates will be sent electronically to successful candidates from FIDE.

6.2     FIDE Preschool Instructor (PSI) Seminars

6.2.1     When a seminar is involved, the procedures will be the same as the FIDE School Instructor seminars. Lecturers will be experts in educational chess (not necessarily experts in competitive chess) with expertise for the target age group.

6.2.2     Alternative: No seminar is involved. The requirement may be fulfilled by a distance learning course. Applicants familiarize themselves with all the materials at eys.fide.com and then take an automated online examination.

6.3     FIDE Lead School Instructor (LSI) Seminars

6.3.1     Organizational Steps: A FIDE Lead School Instructor Seminar (LSI) shall be organized by EDU together with the Chess Scientific Research Institute (CSRI). The course announcement will be promoted through social media such as on the FIDE and EDU websites. Seminars will normally The seminar announcement will be promoted through social media such as on the FIDE and EDU websites. Seminars will normally occupy 3 or 5 days (15 hours total). The seminar and the examination will be based on the FIDE Lead School Instructor (LSI) documents and other materials created by or recommended by the EDU Commission. Lecturers will be experts in educational chess (not necessarily experts in competitive chess). Seminar evaluation will be by a multi-factor system (see below). The examination results will be submitted by the Lead Instructor(s) to EDU for approval. EDU will notify FIDE of the results and title certificates will be sent electronically to successful candidates from FIDE.

7.       Lead School Instructors

7.1     All EDU seminars are conducted by Lead School Instructors (LSI). Both CSRI and LSI (formerly CEL) are highly skilled professionals, each with many years of experience in the chess education field.

7.2     Lead School Instructors will be experts in educational chess (they may, additionally be expert in sport chess).

Lead School Instructors will be appointed by the EDU Commission after appropriate online training (LSI documentation) and certification.

7.3     Seminars: Certified Lead School Instructors will be responsible for leading the SI and PSI seminars for teachers (2 lecturers per seminar), and they receive 50% (shared between them) of the total income (excluding Award fess) generated by the seminars they offer.

7.4     Seminars: CSRI or other EDU appointed Lead School Instructors will be responsible for leading the LSI seminars (usually 2 lecturers per seminar), and they receive 50% (shared between them) of the total income (excluding Award fess) generated by those seminars.

7.5     Payment to lecturers does not include travel expenses or board & lodging which are additional costs for the organizers in the event of an on-site seminar.

8.       Seminar Evaluation

8.1     A multi-factor evaluation system will be applied for LSI and LPSI (SI and PSI by exam only), where the final evaluation will be carried out by summing the evaluation weights of different components:

8.2     Pass marks:

9.       FIDE Certified Courses (resulting in certificates with FIDE logo)

9.0     FIDE Certified Courses may be in person, online, or hybrid.

9.1     Approval of FIDE Certified Courses

9.1.1     Organizational Steps: Requests from organizations for approval of FIDE certified  courses will be sent to the EDU office and forwarded to the International Advisory Board (IAB). IAB will review the applicant’s completed rubric and make recommendations to FIDE and FIDE EDU. If approved, the applicant will be notified that their course is a Certified Course. The FIDE logo may appear nowhere except on the certificate that is provided by the course provider. The certification approval announcement will appear on the EDU website. Quality Assurance will be determined by course evaluations conducted by the organization giving the courses along with other data submitted to the IAB. Recertification requires a review by the IAB and a payment of the renewal fee by the Organization.

9.1.2     Certificate Headings

FIDE-Certified Educational Chess Course for Teachers
FIDE-Certified Educational Chess Course for Students

Certificate  Numbering
AAA – BBB – 0000000

AAA = Course Provider
BBB - Course Name
000000 – Certificate Number

9.1.3     FIDE Titles for Certified Courses will only be awarded by special arrangement between FIDE EDU and the Organization.

9.2     FIDE Certified Course Financial

9.2.1     Upon mutual agreement with the applicant, the application fees will be based on the complexity of the course/project. The number of man-hours required for the certification process will be determined and the application fee payment schedule will be determined.

9.2.2     Payment must be made direct to FIDE except in the case of certified courses organized by National Chess Federations (fees will be included in the usual invoices from FIDE) or organizations certified by FIDE and FIDE EDU.

9.2.3     Other fee arrangements between FIDE and the organization conducting courses may be made with FIDE based on the number of certificates awarded.

10.     Previous titles (2012-2021).

Holders of CEL will, at no cost, be awarded the LSI title with the same three-year validity that appears on their CEL award certificate.

Holders of the SI title, as shown in the FIDE database, will be unaffected except that they will be subject to the three-year validity. Existing titles will be treated as having a licence valid until 28 February 2025. On expiry of the three-year validity, these title holders will be subject to the same validity regulations as non-title holders.