My experiences teaching go, first impressions

[msgreg]

I also published this at my "behind the scenes" blog on DIY, teaching go, and go club tips.

I use my 9x9 "Capture Go" and 5x5/7x7 "Stone Counting" teaching board to teach others about go. You can print them out for free.

Age 3.5:
Did not really understand or seem interested in rules. Played "put the pieces on the intersections" instead. Occasionally showed a capture. Session lasted 5-10 minutes.

Age 6-7 - Korean-speaking student, English-speaking teacher:
Wanted to play "Stone-capturing" method, but it didn't infuse excitement. Plus the language barrier was too great to explain any subtleties.

We ended up playing capture go with an animated "CAPTURE!" from the teacher, eliciting smiles and laughter each time from the student. We played 2-3 games. The session lasted maybe 15-20 minutes. The student seemed to really understand the basic rules of the game.

Age 30-40, experienced gamers:
Over lunch, showed the 9x9 board started with a brief introduction "These are all the rules" and played a series of problems "where to capture, where to avoid capture". We then played capture go 2-3 times. (Before the game I usually start with handicap of 5 and play on the side star point (on a 9x9, that's on the 3-line). Student (as is usual) starts by placing an attached stone at the 2-line. When I attach, they rarely extend, that's when they lose, and then I show them the sequence slowly and note that they lost by 1) playing away from all their stones losing the ability to connect and, 2) not extending, starving the stone of liberties and a chance to survive. Usually by the fourth game, we're playing beyond the first capture and then I get a chance to show scoring. For most people, 4-6 games is enough to see the subtlety of the game and pique interest.

Then showed the "stone counting" method and we played on a 7x7 board. I captured the student's stones by placing a stone in one remaining eye. Then I explained two eyes and life & death. "Wow" was the response "I can see how this can get interesting". The session lasted 10-15 minutes during lunch and between bites.

We also talked about the balance required and the "yin and yang" aspect of give and take, a brief comparison to chess (battle vs. war, singular focus vs. whole board territory). Overall, the session was very well received by the three people at the table.

About complex
I no longer use "complex" in my description of Go. I'm influenced by Paul Smith's 2008 analysis "The Image of Baduk in the West: Marketing Baduk to the public in the United Kingdom" wherein he writes: "All this seems to add up to an image of Baduk as a game which is difficult, takes a lot of time and effort, and is perhaps somewhat elitist and only for very clever people. Perhaps the game is not often seen as providing a lot of fun or enjoyment."

I hope this helps in your teaching, too.

[Nepsis]

Thanks for the informative post. Also, great links at the bottom there. I'll be teaching a go workshop in a few months, so am beginning to prep for that. Think I may have to see about making a magnetic board like you did. Great info!

[topazg]

Paul has a lot of excellent comments and advice on teaching Go

[Bonobo]

Thank you.

[..] "[..] only for very clever people [..]"

This is THE phrase which I’ll use, from now on, in Go teaching encounters with people who’ve not yet swallowed the bait

[goTony]

"I no longer use "complex" in my description of Go. I'm influenced by Paul Smith's 2008 analysis "The Image of Baduk in the West: Marketing Baduk to the public in the United Kingdom" wherein he writes: "All this seems to add up to an image of Baduk as a game which is difficult, takes a lot of time and effort, and is perhaps somewhat elitist and only for very clever people. Perhaps the game is not often seen as providing a lot of fun or enjoyment."

I agree. One has to avoid explaining it as an incredibly complex game not meant for mere mortals. I often compare it to Golf. A few rules hit a ball in a hole in as few attempts as possible. Now you have a game you can enjoy for the rest of your life! I also emphasize coming to the GO club and playing with other people, over beer and pizza. First beer is on me! Our club recently had a GO movie night with cheap egg rolls and saki and watched the GO Master. It is fun and enjoyable to think and compete.

[tekesta]

It is often said that there is no defeat in weiqi, so there is probably no "victory" either. Only constant self-improvement.

In its purest essence, weiqi is like life itself. An endless number of things happen in an endless number of ways, but it can all be distilled down to just a few things. In weiqi, the concept of liberties and capture is what governs everything that happens in the game.

In fact, the objective of occupying 51% or more of total intersections on the board emerges from the need to have a bigger group with more liberties than the opponent, so that the opponent runs out of liberties first and so loses the game. This is analogous to two nations at war in which the side holding more land will be able to produce more food with which to feed more soldiers. The side holding less land will produce less food and so feed fewer soldiers, thus making defeat a possibility. If the war continues, eventually the lesser side will lose everything, so both sides must come to an agreement before gains become losses. In weiqi, playing past a certain point means playing inside one's own territory (empty intersections) until only one liberty remains. So it is necessary to know when to stop playing.

Of course, the novice will not know the importance of life & death, the right moment to pass move, or even the importance of stone group shape. Which is why I believe that playing several games of capture Go at the beginning is good for the novice. The novice will learn what liberties are and how liberties adjacent to a stone or group of stones can be occupied to result in capture, how stones can be added to a group to prevent them from being captured, what shapes of stone groups resist capture, etc. As well, after demonstrating counting of liberties and capturing techniques, the novice can play with another novice and discover different ways of doing things in a game of weiqi. Additional info is supplied only upon request.

This last item is important because many amateur weiqi tutors (myself included) often make the mistake of supplying too much info in the first lesson. I've recently realized that it is better to demonstrate the bare bones basics and let the novice play around with them a bit before presenting new information. After some problem-solving, the novice will have some background experience to help with understanding the new material.

Which reminds me, a tutor should avoid criticizing anything the novice does until after he/she has played a few dozen games. When criticism is given, it should be given truthfully but respectfully. A novice in weiqi is like a newborn baby. Just as the newborn knows nothing of what an adult knows, the novice knows nothing of what the seasoned weiqi player knows. Thus, it is only fair to give the novice a few basic tips (concept of liberties and capture in this case) and let him/her experiment as much as possible. As the novice grows in the game, more new concepts are learned and put into practice. Eventually, just as the newborn grows into an adult, the novice grows into a seasoned weiqi player.
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Those who are skilled at combat do not become angered. Those who are skilled at winning do not become afraid. Thus, the wise win before they fight, while the ignorant fight to win.
Zhuge Liang

[oren]

It is often said that there is no defeat in weiqi, so there is probably no "victory" either.

Beginners should know that defeat is when you have fewer points at the end of game and victory is when you have more.

There's no need to make it so mysterious.

[goTony]

Greg,

I did take a look at your behind the scenes info. And it is a wealth of ideas, and info well worth someone taking a look. Where do you find the time though?

Thanks for sharing.

Anthony

[msgreg]

Greg,

I did take a look at your behind the scenes info. And it is a wealth of ideas, and info well worth someone taking a look. Where do you find the time though?

Thanks for sharing.

Anthony

I'm very glad the behind-the-scenes was useful for you! Time is always short