While it is generally safe to use -さん when taking to someone and the use of -先生 is appropriate for use in a school environment when talking to a teacher, would the use of -先生 carry over outside of the school environment if encounter the person under different circumstances?
For example, while the use of the honorifics is pretty obvious in a school environment, suppose the teacher of one of the classes starts to learn a new martial art where one of their students holds a higher rank within the art, how would this affect the use of honorifics?
Answer
I don't think the earlier three answers are completely correct.
Japanese adopts the relative honorification system, meaning that whether to honorify a particular person depends on the existence of a third person. Suppose A is B's teacher. Within a conversation between A and B, it is appropriate for B to use 先生 to refer to A, irrespective of the situation. However, suppose A and B are doing a venture business together, perhaps selling products that came out as result of study. Suppose B picks a phone from a customer C. In this situation, B cannot use 先生 to refer to A. Otherwise, it would be considered rude of B to C. Here, A and B are one group as opposed to C, and hence, B has to use the humble form to refer to A, just as B would do when referring to him/herself.
I heard, although am not completely sure, that this is where the Korean honorification system differs from the Japanese honorification system.
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