Job Discussion Forums

[frannie1]

hi there i am training to be a efl teacher at the moment and have ben looking on these boards a lot for info and advice. its struck me how much people seem to be complaining about teaching in schools and colleges and i was thinking maybe private lessons are the way to go? anyone agree? does anyone currently do just that and how difficult is it to set yourself up etc especially abroad? thanks

[spiral78]

It takes time to build up a client base of private students. You need a local reputation and references. Usually teachers start to gather private students in their first year in some location while working contracts at schools. However, it's generally very difficult to support yourself with just privates - their attendance tends to be spotty.

Another consideration is that the majority of adult students take courses paid for by their companies - and those companies need to show billing to a reputable school, not an individual teacher.

[naturegirl321]

There are good and bad things about teaching privates. Good, you can set your own schedule, prices, hours.
Bad, people cancel lessons, don't pay, you need to buy your own material.

You need to get established first, might take a while to build up students, but it can be done.

[denise]

[nickpellatt]

Im in my first full year as a teacher...and I would prefer to be in the classroom without a doubt!

Not everyone moans about their job

Im currently working with a summer school, and things are not quite the same as the regular 45 mins in the 'safe' and comfortable surrounding of my classroom.

I would feel, as a new teacher, that I would need more experience, a lot more, before I was confident to teach one-on-one with fewer teaching materials/ less structure/and no regular classroom.

[Justin Trullinger]

Your query, as Denise points out, is pretty general. (Where are you thinking of teaching, what complaints might you hope to avoid by teaching privately?)

In Ecuador, plenty of teachers have private classes as a way to supplement their regular income, but nobody with any sense would want to do only private classes. Many people complain, for example, that a problem with teaching in language institutes is that earning fluctuate when hours fluctuate. Privates are even worse in this respect.

Besides, if you teach privately only, you can pretty much forget professional development, support from colleagues and admin, and moving up.

Best,
Justin

[ktodba]

You might also find that you need a job in a school to get a visa in certain countries.

Privates are useful supplementary income but don't turn up automatically, you generally need to spend some time building a reputation first.

If you can get enough reliable private students and cut out the middle man then in the short term you will probably be better off. Most people though use privates as supplementary income for a reason.

AS for complaining about the job? That's natural, look at how many people are on the board and how long some of them have been teaching: just because we generally enjoy our jobs doesn't mean we aren't entitled to moan sometimes.

Good luck but please make sure you go wherever you want to go with a plan 'B'.

[tedkarma]

I've taught privately, in one form or another, in every country in which I have TEFLed. (Is that the past participle of TEFL?)

I've always enjoyed private classes more as they give you a real opportunity to meet and really get to know people either in very small groups or one-on-one vs quite large groups in classrooms (I've taught from about 25 up to 100+).

I've been fortunate enough to help people get into graduate school or elite secondary school, immigrate to other countries, advance in their management roles, improve their businesses - and the list goes on and on.

All that said - you need a residence visa/permit and I've always relied on my "school" job to handle that for me. I've never neglected those duties as I enjoy that kind of teaching too, but the private classes have always been much more personally rewarding (not to mention financially rewarding too).

In some places such work is strictly illegal, some places it is against regulations but everyone does it and a blind eye is turned by officials, other places no problem at all.

Don't do anything illegal - and if you do - recognize and be prepared for the consequences.

I've always heard that such income is unreliable, and it is to a degree, but I've always enjoyed the surprise evening off. And, I've never put myself in a position where that income was critical to my survival or financial plans - but I do have to say that the extra income over the years has bought and fully paid for at least one rental property back home . . .

[QatarChic]

Ditto what other people have said- its good for supplementing income but don't rely solely on it. I also prefer to be recommended through word of mouth...and never advertised myself online/newspaper etc- as I never felt safe that way....good luck with it

[Mr. Kalgukshi]

Postings regarding teaching private lessons in nations where it is illegal will not be permitted on this forum.

[spiral78]

I don't wish to discuss anything illegal - but it's news to me that there are nations where one can't legally have private students.

Would it be ok to ask what nations don't allow this?

I can speculate about the 'whys' and have no interest in discussing how to get around the laws, but I think it would be useful to know where privates are not allowed.

[tedkarma]

[jonniboy]

I would say that it depends on the location. I think would be possible to make a living for most of the year teaching privates in Latvia. In Spain, no way, at least not for the first few years.

I've come full circle and will be doing very few private classes next year (I had 19 hours a week of privates at one point.) The thing that really bugs me about them isn't mentioned above. It's the 'vanishing student' factor. No matter how many times I tell them to do me the courtesy of a simple SMS or email if they decide to stop coming many of them don't bother and it's very frustrating just to be sitting with a class prepared for a student who doesn't even have the decency to inform me that they don't want to come any more.

[Justin Trullinger]

If you have residency and independent tax status, and declare your income on the required tax declarations, it's legal to teach private lessons in Ecuador.

If you're on a visa of any kind that was obtained in accordance with a specific job with a specific school, then it is technically illegal to teach private lessons.

Even if you're an Ecuadorian citizen, the way private lessons are usually handled (cash in hand, no receipts or paper trails) is technically illegal.


A useful skill for living in Latin America has always been that of figuring out which rules are flexible, and which aren't.


Best,
Justin

[JZer]