Sistema de actividades de ajedrez y juegos de mesa como motivación hacia la elección de bachillerato en área técnica deportiva

Vocational guidance in basic education constituted a key process for ensuring educational choices aligned with students’ interests, abilities, and future expectations. In the context of the Technical Sports Baccalaureate, low levels of motivation and limited awareness among students negatively affected enrollment rates. This study aimed to design a system of chess and board game activities as a motivational strategy to encourage the future selection of the Technical Sports Baccalaureate. The research adopted a mixed-method approach with an exploratory and propositional design. Data were collected through semi-structured interviews with three sports-area teachers and surveys administered to 61 fourth- and fifth-grade General Basic Education students who had participated in chess and board game activities. The results revealed that over 90% of students reported high levels of interest, motivation, and willingness to continue engaging in these activities, as well as increased openness toward sports- and strategy-related educational pathways. Teachers also agreed that chess strengthened cognitive, socio-emotional, and strategic skills transferable to sports training. Based on these findings, a structured activity system integrating chess, board games, and Rubik’s cubes was designed for projected implementation in upper basic education (8th–10th grade), the stage preceding the selection of the Technical Sports Baccalaureate. The study concluded that game-based learning constituted an effective pedagogical tool for enhancing motivation and supporting vocational orientation toward technical sports education.