Nutshell:
— Shop around!
With the increase of popularity of Go in the West, the number of teachers trying to cater to this market grows by the day. This includes both the strong asian players as well as the strong european players. There are choices. And then there are Choices! :)
Just as the skill level varies from teacher to teacher, so does the price. And so does their teaching style and experience as a pedagogue. A teacher who is right for me might not be right for you, and vice versa. So you have to consider carefully before investing your money this way.
Now, how do you tell one teacher from another? Tough question. In my experience, people usually judge the teachers by their playing prowess, with the stronger players being considered better teachers (and, subsequently, charging more for their services.) But I am not sure that this is necessarily the case. I think that playing strength and quality as a teacher do not always go hand in hand, although they certainly can.
So what should you do, how can you determine if a teacher is right for you or not?
The first step is to actually do look at the teachers rank. If his or her rank is close (or even lower) than your own, then do not consider paying this person. Of course, this does not mean that they have nothing to teach you, but only that the amount that you can learn will probably be not worth the money you spend. In other words, the benefit-to-cost ratio is too low. It is my opinion that a teacher suitable for you should be at least 5 levels stronger than you. Possibly more than that. Of course, since you are most probably a rank beginner, this pretty much includes everybody. :)
However, I am not entirely sure that a teacher whose rank is much higher than yours will do you much good. Lets think for a moment what will you expect the teacher to do. You will expect him or her to point your most obvious mistakes at the moment, and then suggest ways to overcome them, simplistically speaking. So the teacher has to (1) be weak enough to identify with the way you think and (2) be strong enough to suggest ways of improvement. Or even to remember how they themselves overcame these problems. If the teacher is too far away mentally from where you are, this is hard to accomplish... or it takes an exceptional teaching abilities to do so.
I am not sure if a pro, for example, can really identify with the mental processes of a beginner when that one puts a large group in self-atari. Well, maybe... I don't know.
My suggestion would be to pick a teacher who is 5-15 levels stronger than you. However,
I am aware that there are very few, if any, teachers out there who are only 15 levels
stronger than a beginner. So forget what I said and just pick whoever you like. :)
Another, or concurrent, method of deciding which teacher is right for you is to look at what the teacher does, how the classes are conducted. Are these group classes or individual meetings, face-to-face meetings, or on-line encounters. Real-time server or email? Pick what is right for you.
The ways of figuring this all out are multifold. The simplest is to look at the teachers webpage and read what the teacher says about him- or herself. You can also poll his or her students for opinions. Ask not only if they are happy with the result and if they think the money was well spent. In most cases they will say "yes, the teacher is great" even if they do not really think so. Such is human nature, its hard to admit you have wasted money on something unsuitable. So do not ask them about this, and do not put too much faith in their answers if you do.
Rather - ask them to describe how the lessons went, how did they look, what did they do with the teacher. Was it a game, a commented game, a lecture, a series of games with comments, or what? You need to know that before you commit to spend money!
And finally, there is always the last resort - ask the teacher him- or herself for a free sample. Or at least to describe to you personally whet they have to offer, and maybe even discuss what you need so they can tell you if, and to what extend, they can provide that. Actually, this step should always be done before hiring a teacher. If you cannot reach an understanding before the money changed hands, you will probably not do so afterwards.
You can find more in the Commercial Sites section of my Go Links page.
As with the number of Go teachers, the number of Go Schools, Academies, and Institutes grows. Some on-line (and real-life) clubs offer teaching services for beginners, some organize classes. Some servers provide lectures, sometimes by some of the best players in the world. Usually you need to pay, but not always.
Look into these things. It might be a more pocket-friendly alternative to a personal teacher. I cannot really say any more about these things, not having any first-hand experience myself. But i hear good things... :)
Just one final thought. When you hire a teacher, or pay for a service from a school or server, you need to remember what it is you are actually paying for. With all the resources available to you, in local clubs, on the net, and in the bookstores, it is pretty much certain that everything that a teacher can give you in terms of solid knowledge you can also discover by yourself. And probably in time which is not too much longer if you are determined.
So what makes teachers special, worth paying money for. It is actually 3 different things that a teacher can bring to the table which are hard to find otherwise. These 3 things, the things you are really paying a teacher for, are:
As you can see, contrary to the common belief, you do not pay a teacher foremost for their expertise. Not even for their teaching skills. These are criteria which determine the right teacher for you. But once this determination is made, you actually pay for the 3 things I mentioned above.
So lets just briefly talk about these 3 things.
Commitment:
— When you pay a person, you can expect him or her to be there when you need them,
at the appointed time, ready to teach you and answer your questions. This is valuable
and it does not often apply to your favorite local players who sometimes explain things
to you - they might be sick when you want to play, or just feel like not giving any
lectures today. And you have no grounds to be upset or expect that they be there for
you. When you hire a teacher you can expect and you can demand that they
be there for you.
Dedication:
— Go teachers are usually dedicated to you during the time you pay for their services.
This means that they should not get distracted when a pretty girl (or boy) runs around
or when their buddies come and try to get them out for a beer. Again, this might not
be the case with local friendlies. A teacher is dedicated to you because you paid
for that! This is important. And if you have the feeling the teacher short-changes you
in this respect, you are perfectly right to say so.
Personalization:
— As I said above, most (if not all) of the knowledge a teacher has can be found using
other, usually much cheaper sources. Books, games, discussions with fellow players,
observation of high-level kibitzes on the servers, and so on. What a teacher can do,
if he or she is any good, is to organize this knowledge in the way just right for you,
so you do not have to wad through volumes of stuff which does not help you much. In a
way, a teacher is more like a personal coach, a guru, who points you in the right
direction so that you do not stumble around blindly. A good teacher, additionally,
presents you with the knowledge right for you at the time, no more and no less.
And this is worth the money you pay, because it saves you time.
And one more thing. Important thing. Do not let your reverence in the face of a much stronger player, which the teacher undoubtedly will be, prevent you from telling him or her when you are not happy with the service. Communication is important, and I am sure that the teacher will also appreciate the feedback you provide. Even if it is negative.
So don't be shy.
And remember - you are paying for it.
So you have a right to demand.
Period!