A Harvard Law School professor and a group of his students formed an organization this fall — the Global Poker Strategic Thinking Society — dedicated to demonstrating that poker has educational benefits. They argue that the game, which is probability-based and requires risk assessment, situational analysis and a gift for reading people, can be an effective teaching tool, whether for middle school math or in business and law classes.
I'm not totally convinced that promoting poker for middle school math learning is a positive expected value for the game as a whole, but I do appreciate a group working to show that this is not exclusively a game for degenerate gamblers. The variety of situations faced in a game are virtually endless and the number of decision points involved allow for a relatively fast learning environment. The value of poker for grad level students is not in doubt to me and it may be that younger kids can take a lesson from the game as well -- but it probably shouldn't be in the same form they see on TV. In addition, if poker is to be used as an educational tool -- it must include more than just NL Texas Hold'em. An exploration into Limit Hold'em may be the best spot to gain interest and keep math as the center focus... NL tends to involve much more reading of people and understanding implied odds and other factors.
Also, if any grad students want to learn how to play... I'd be glad to teach you. (Bring $50).
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