chess tutors/teachers

All,

I'm sure there are chess teachers out there that coach junior players.

Two questions:
- is it possible to teach online or is personal instruction the only way to go; and
- what's a reasonable rate for a good/excellent teacher.

Thanks in advance for advice.

A parent

Are you asking for yourself or someone else and if someone else what is their age and level of chess playing currently? 

I think it is possible to teach online, although I have not received or taught this way.  Rates could go anywhere from $15 per hour to $80 per hour. 

Komodo 9.3, Stockfish 7 (free download) and Fritz 15 will all teach you quite a few aspects of chess and you only have to pay them once.  (I'm assuming you have a computer). 

There are some really excellent videos on this site if you become a diamond member that will teach you about openings, middlegames and endings, plus there is Chess Mentor and Chess Tactics trainer.  You could read the forums for advice on outstanding chess books or DVD's.

You can go to google and enter "Five Great Chess Books for Beginners."

Just thinking...

I strongly advise you to NOT consider computers as a coach AND espacially for a junior player.  

One difference between an adult and scholastic player will be the attention span- if you don't engage their mind- they'll learn absolutely nothing.

would you ever hand you kid a dictionary and tell them to learn how to read?  thats how ridiculous it is, to give a kid a chess engine and expect them to become a strong player?

You surely CAN find good coaching Online, but for the sake of their potential, but a little money and dedication into the search.  you don't need big titles, you need people with proven results teaching kids....

and... I might add the biggest qualification for their success if that They really love chess.

there's not point on coaching IMHO, a kid who has a passing whim.   If they are playing avidly on the own- and you find the right person, perhaps they will be good and long-term improvement.

but don't push the kid into any thing.  I taught both of my kids chess- but both had a very passing interest, and did just a tournament or so... not enough interest for coaching...

     If you notice the post I made coaching was mentioned, computers were mentioned and so were DVD's and books.  It certainly is not "ridiculous" to use computers as ONE of the tools to help a player raise the level of his game.  Chess coaches are fine, but 15 lessons at $40 per lesson is $600 and many people cannot afford that kind of money.  Few people can afford the kind of coaching that Fabiano Caruana received.  Some chess coaches are terrific and others are mediocre.

     One of the most important things for a lower level player is to go over and analyze each game that they play.  First of all, the player should go over his game and try to understand where it could have been improved.  Then he can use a chess engine for a deeper understanding. 

     A chess engine like Komodo 9.3 has a built-in opening book that can inform the player of one of the correct ways to play an opening.  It can point out tactical errors and lastly it searches so deeply (20+ plys) that now it is finding positional moves that only bear fruit after many moves. 

     Many people cannot afford a chess coach, but they can afford books, DVD's, chess.com membership or a chess engine: Stockfish 7 is free and once purchased the above items can be gone back to again and again without extra charge, while every lesson costs extra money.

     Bobby Fischer, Capablanca and Nigel Short to list a few were all basically self-taught so you can learn if you don't have the money for a professional coach.

ok.  here's my simple answer draebi.

I couldn't agree more that this is a good methodical way to improve.  but we're talking about a kid (and if said kid is anything like most american kids I have known), there not going to methodically study their games with a chess engine.  you going to have to have a more engaging way for them to learn chess.

I won't put down books.  I have a couple books that my kids (even though they were casual players)- did go over.  "Chess tactics for Students" by bain for example. very good tactics workbook that my son enjoyed- and he learned a lot about tactics with it.

a good coach can make the education fun!  this is the MOST important thing for any kid getting good at chess- If they don't really learn to love the game they won't improve.

and I see it all the Time (people giving up because they feel chess improvement isn't fun)- Even with adults!

-------------

as an aside, when I was a kid I got a weak "kingmaster" chess board.  I played with it Alot of games strait to learn to win it!  but once I did,  I took joy out of beating it over and over again.

so I'm not Entirely against chess engines - I just think- 1) kids won't take joy out of contantly being beaten by an invicible silicon monster 2) kids won't take joy out of spending "equal time" of playing to patiently trying to understand engine recommendations.  (some of which very few of us would understand).

and 3) if Kids Aren't taking joy in it; nothing will matter, bc they will give up.

ok, apparently the "kingmasters" are no more.  but a 'kids' electronic chess board can still be bought..

http://www.amazon.com/dp/B013CJVUYA/ref=sxr_pa_click_within_right_aps_sr_pg1_1?psc=1

this board, not only includes a lot of kid friendly levels, it also has a bunch of activities.  I can imagine stuff like "KQK" endgame training...  and that sounds very handy

I would look into it...

Two questions:
- is it possible to teach online or is personal instruction the only way to go; and
- what's a reasonable rate for a good/excellent teacher.

Online teaching would require some face-to-face aspect, such as Skype. Even then, it is not OTB instruction and will have the same flaws when adjusting to OTB play or will need the student to set up the position OTB while being taught online. Regardless, some coaches choose not to teach online and some do. The coach and/or student do not have to worry about travel as with OTB coaching. 

The student needs to be attentive and put full effort in or the lessons will be ineffective or have a lessened effect and reflect badly on both coach and student. 

Reasonable coaching can range from $20 to $100 per hour individually, with similar rates for groups. I am a 20 year old first year coach and make about $30 per hour for group lessons. 

Some important points: 

• Children think differently and may have difficulty grasping the position on the board. 
• The coach needs to understand that children will make silly mistakes.
• The simplest ideas, though trivial they may seem, can be the reason for a child's failure (be it losing a tournament game, quitting chess, or considering himself/herself a failure) if they are not mastered before introducing material that is far more complicated. 
• Balance between encouragement and facing reality is important.
• With children, starting earlier will make them stronger overall as a player. 

In person is definitely preferable, but online can work.  

DO NOT use chess engines, unless the person is somewhat advanced.  All an engine will do is give you variations with +/- symbols.  And if you dont understand what +.4 means then it does you no good.  

Have a coach go over your games, have them analyze, and give input.  

As for what is charged?  Depends on the level of coach you hire.  If youre a beginner, then you can get by hiring someone that is advanced, but not a titled player.  Dont get caught up in the title.  Finding a coach is like shopping for shoes, you have to find one that is a good fit, and feels good.

GM's/IM's can charge anywhere from $50-$100+ an hour.  

     From what I have observed at scholastic tournaments, most of the coaches are using chess engines.

1) Depends of the age and character of the student. Students of low age tends to distract and this is impossible to control in a on-line class. Students of 8+ years with a good attitude can take on-line class withouth problems. 

2) This depends on a lot of factors, experience of the teacher, titles of the teacher, country, etc.

The software can help a lot but isn't the same that a teacher. For software I recomend the free combo (scid+stockfish7 I use this for years stockfishx + scid) but if you want a easy combo with all buy fritz 15. 

In software for tablets I recomend scid, and droidfish for analyze engyne. And chessking software for training.