You obviously went to the wrong places

Maybe you should go to Napoli to see people hunting through bins, or maybe stand next to the piles of rubbish

I used to live in Barcelona, there are 10,000s of young Italians living there because they say they cant find the same opportunities in Italy. I think that tells you everything you need to know!

Envy

I know that Spain was not a patch on Italy the place I live compared to Sevilla, which is a nice place but the poverty is like nothing I have ever seen and we were in a nice part.

Anyway, it was not pleasant and I know that because I was there!

That's what all the narrow-minded teacher bashers think (and don't you mean 'hack it in a real job'?)

I think logic REALLY escapes some people on here. They post about how hard life is in Spain, how nobody should go there, how much they're struggling and in some cases, how they totally failed and had to go back and still try to look down on other people for 'only' being teachers?

Your bitterness is apparent and rather amusing to me. I don't know what you do, but I've done several different jobs and I was good at all of them. I just didn't enjoy them. I love teaching. It's fun, rewarding, interesting and challenging. I get paid pretty much a full-time salary for about 16 contact hours a week. My prep time is minimal, as I have a lot of experience and resources. I can sleep in late most mornings and do only a couple of hours on a Friday. I have plenty of time to work on my writing and music.

You just keep telling yourself teaching is for losers. I'm sure whatever you do is SO much more important. I'm just glad I'm not slogging away in a job I hate so I can impress the neighbours and strangers on the internet.

Most English TEFL teachers I know work few hours and get lousy pay, the ones that don't are not the norm.

TEFL teachers do have a rather "backpacker" status, quite logical considering the number of former TEFLtons that one meets.

When recounting their experinces of 1 year in China, 18 months in Italy etc, it is obvious that the big draw to get the qualification was to be able to travel and earn a few bob to be able to do so.

Another reason is that whenever anyone asks about moving to Spain (or travelling around the world, the stock answer is usually "become a TEFL teacher".
That seems to be the advice wheeled out on a regular basis on this forum too.

TEFL teaching does not appear to be a life long career choice for many, most do it for a limited length of time, usually until it has outlived its usefulness ie, when they need to settle down.

I've recently been visiting Madrid, and took the opportunity to catch up with some teacher friends. It seems as before they are certainly doing well and are earning 2k+ a month. This was always the case with the autonomo business English teachers, but it appears that the academy teachers on contract have plenty of 25 or 30 Euro private classes to supplement their income.
For those who "know better" despite in fact having no knowledge of the profession, here is a directory listing of teachers offering language classes in Madrid. Unless all teachers of English are total liars (and I can assure you they are not) you can see that the majority state the classes are charged at between 25 and 30 Euros per hour
http://www.madridteacher.com/profesores-de-ingles.htm
Having said all that, it's not all it may seem. My old colleague is annoyed at the rise in taxes for autonomos, and is considering looking for a tax free lucrative post in the Middle East after 12 years in Spain. I think he should weigh up sweating it out so he at least gets the 15 years of autonomo fees towards a good pension in Spain (better than the UK equivalent, but he's paid in plenty of dosh over the years). Also, 2k is certainly a good wage in Madrid, but you have to remember that classes fade away for several weeks over Christmas, and dissapear altogether in August. Many teachers find they have to get temporary work in the UK or Ireland at that time, or use up their savings.
The feedback I get from the Madrid community is that they currently have plenty of work, and if you are prepared to work hard the rewards are there - one of the few areas where you would earn more than in London. However the Spanish govt is now squuezing more tax out of you, and who knows if the current demand for languages will continue in the same vein in the future? It may be that if demand slackens you will need to consider working in China, Turkey or other countries.

Sevilla is not the whole of Spain! Your comment is just stupidly generalised

The dirtiest city I've ever been to is Rome. I have no idea if the whole of Italy is as dirty

Not related to CM are you, he's good at everything as well.

So how much is a full salary? Sounds like you are working the equivalent of 2 days a week and bumming around the rest, like a lot of TEFL teachers. I thought you were trying to convince us you were a dedicated, hard working grafter.

Nice little 150 hour TEFL course for £49 for anyone else that fancies earning big money.
http://www.groupon.co.uk/deals/natio...0_0_304&a=1664

Another post that shows a lack of knowledge of the profession. Although there may be 16 hours giving the class, there is also preparation work needed. Additionally, if you do business and/or private classes, chances are you'll spend time travelling to each location, not every teacher has the luxury of block classes.
Although 16 hours is probably the minimum you'd need (as you get cancellations from time to time) that still works out at a decent wage @ 25 or 30 euros an hour. I'm sure other jobs can pay more, but there are jobs that pay less and are more unstable...

Here's a useful link for those thinking of training to teach English

http://www.englishwarehouse.com/arti...&cat=education

Not many on here will need that link...they all have a starter TEFL

You really are very amusing and again, your jealousy is shining through. Really clutching at straws now, aren't we?

Yes, I am a dedicated professional. When did I mention grafting? Grafting is what I did when I worked in McDonald's as a student, during the summer, doing entire days for less than I'm earning now. I worked hard at university, during my Masters, during my CELTA course and in my previous TEFL employment in places like London where wages were low and now I have a very nice job that I enjoy a lot. I don't need to graft and it has given me a serious chuckle that someone is seriously trying to tell me I should be working twice as hard or long for the same money when there's absolutely no need to. I would have thought that common sense would tell you that the ideal job pays you a full-time salary while essentially letting you work part time.

I know this is probably too much for you to take, given that you can't comprehend anyone's reality but your own, but I don't 'bum around' in my spare time. I get plenty of sleep because I have a serious medical condition that means I get tired easily. The rest of the time, I translate, contribute articles to an English teaching journal, practise the piano and guitar, study for the DELE exam and volunteer at a food pantry and as a teacher for kids whose parents can't afford an academy.

So, how do you spend your day?

That's not a proper course and no serious school would employ someone with that. I see the whole idea of different levels of qualifications and experience escapes you. Just to spell it out for you:

You can get a third in Media Studies from a university nobody's ever heard of. That's a degree. You can also get a first class degree from Oxford. That's a degree. They are not equivalent.

Person A could work in a shack in Thailand for a year, teaching English conversation. Person B could work at a reputable school in Madrid, teaching Business English, exam preparation and working on syllabus design. Both jobs might fall under the TEFL umbrella, but they couldn't be more different.

Do you get it yet?

How I see it too.

You didn't answer the question, what's this weekly equivalent you get for working 2 days.

Then perhaps you have chosen the correct job, I've never had the pleasure of working for 2 days and getting paid for a full week.

I'm earning quite a bit more than the average monthly salary here.

A bit oversimplified there. Teaching hours aren't like office hours. You walk into the school and you're working very, very hard the entire time. Energy-wise, three or four hours of teaching is probably equivalent to a whole day in an office. Have you never asked yourself why most teachers aren't doing 40 hour weeks? I suppose you think they're just lazy. If you work in an office, you're sitting down most of the day, have coffee/tea at hand, can chat with colleagues etc. When you're teaching, the attention is on you 100% of the time and it's up to you to keep the class motivated. It's very, very tiring.

It's worth it for me because I enjoy my job and having few contact hours means I have a lot more free time to do other things, but not everyone could hack it. It's one of those jobs where you get paid for what you actually do, not for the time you sit in front of a computer. Same goes for my writing and translation work. The more efficient I am and the better the work I produce, the more I get paid. I find that much more rewarding than a 9-5 job.

If you want the pleasure of getting paid full-time wages for a '2 day week' then why haven't you signed up for that TEFL course? That's all you need, isn't it?