From AGA By Peter Schumer

The North American Go Instructors' Workshop was held at the Nihon Ki-in and other sites around Tokyo, Japan from October 18-25. Nine highly motivated participants from the United States and Mexico were selected to participate. The cost of travel, housing, most meals, and all the professional instruction fees were generously donated by the Nihon Ki-in and the Iwamoto North American Foundation (INAF). The workshop was a huge success and all the participants feel freshly energized and motivated to build on their new knowledge and enthusiasm for teaching go and sharing go more broadly.

Participants each gave extended lectures on their own local efforts at teaching go and spreading an awareness of the game more widely. We also visited several schools from first grade up to the university level to see go instruction both within the school curriculum as well as an after-school extracurricular activity. We learned about the history of go, go etiquette, the status of go instruction in Japanese schools, as well as the craftsmanship involved in making beautiful go boards, bowls, and stones. One highlight was learning more about the Mizuma method (Toshifumi Mizuma – 7 dan pro) for teaching beginners on small boards (6¡¿6 and 7¡¿7). We also had several opportunities to play simultaneous games with both Toshifumi Mizuma and Michael Redmond 9P. We would also like to thank Michael's younger daughter Yumi Redmond for her expert and wonderful help with accurate real-time translations of the many lectures.

All the participants learned a huge amount from the Japanese teachers and go professionals as well as from one another. We are all re-dedicating our efforts and plan on making ever greater contributions to educating children and the public at large how to play go as well as its pleasures and importance. We hope there will be similar workshops either in Japan or elsewhere in East Asia or perhaps back home in North America. Thank you Nihon Ki-in and INAF for a wonderul workshop and experience!