Finding My Niche

I started small, teaching English to Spanish friends in Barcelona. This early experience did wonders for my confidence and helped me build out my skillset. One of these friends needed English for a job opportunity, which pushed me into the niche of business English.

To develop personalised lessons for his needs, I drew on free online resources like the Market Leader and Business Result workbooks (both easy to find as PDFs), focusing especially on sales language and pitching. This friend became my first loyal student, and the six-month deadline he set for himself kept me motivated to deliver real results.

Moving to Online Tutoring Platforms

With this experience under my belt, I applied to online tutoring platforms like Preply and iTalki, using business English as my selling point while still teaching general English to students who wanted it. Students came from all over the world, and as I built up reviews, my profile gained more visibility – creating a kind of snowball effect toward steady bookings.

Don’t Undervalue Yourself Early On

If there’s one piece of advice I’d give anyone starting out, it’s this: don’t work for less than you’re worth.

Platforms like Preply already take a significant cut when you’re starting (commission begins at 33%). So if you’re charging their recommended $10/hour, you’re really only earning around $7/hour. Depending on where you live, that might be workable. But after moving back to the UK, that translated to roughly £5/hour — a fraction of the UK’s minimum wage of just under £13/hour.

Your progress may feel slower than other tutors’ at first, but I’d strongly recommend setting your prices at a rate you’re actually comfortable with from day one, rather than underselling yourself to rack up reviews. If you don’t make this change early, you risk resenting your first students – their rate stays locked in at whatever you originally charged (say, $10), even as your listed price rises, unless you renegotiate. And renegotiating comes with its own risk: losing students who can’t afford the new rate.

Going Independent

Once you’ve built a solid client base and developed real relationships with your students, it’s worth considering a shift to private tutoring outside these platforms. Technically, this isn’t allowed under sites like Preply’s terms – but in practice, as long as you have a way of contacting your students directly, you won’t run into trouble for going independent.

Making this move myself was the best decision I made for my financial success. It let me escape the high commission rates and build a client base made up entirely of loyal, direct students.

Building Toward Freedom

From there, the path is about growth – branching into new markets and niches until you’re earning enough to work as a full-time, self-employed tutor, on your own terms, at your own rates, and on your own schedule.

This kind of freedom is something more people are chasing every day, as digital nomad living and remote work become increasingly suited to modern life. If that’s the kind of freedom you’ve been looking for, it all starts with a TEFL course.

The post How To Start Your Online TEFL Business appeared first on TEFL Barcelona - TEFL Spain.

China is a fast-developing, exciting place to be right now and if you are looking to make a healthy wage and push your EFL career forward, it is a great option. If you plan it right, you can have a wonderful lifestyle in a bustling city, but with beautiful country landscapes and surrounding Asian countries all easily within reach.

A little personal history…

China is huge and it always used to fascinate yet terrify me. I still remember the first time I experienced Shanghai in transit to Australia. This was around 2005 and being young everything felt extremely out of my comfort zone. I was only staying one night in an airport hotel, but it left a profound impression. I remember the hotel staff could not speak a word of English and even with hand gestures, I failed to communicate. A group of us gingerly decided to take a little walk around the block before the pick-up bus arrived to take us back to the airport and as I ambled those wide, local streets, I looked around and just thought –
‘oh my… if I get lost…I’m NEVER finding my way back…’ The sheer size of the place blew me away. After this experience, the concept of China formed in my mind like my own personal Mount Everest…I knew one day, I had to experience it to its fullest.

This was before smartphones, however. Thank goodness for smartphones. With built-in maps and translation apps! No worry of getting lost with those…

…And so flash forward to more recent times (with smartphones) and now I can sit back and honestly say plucking up the courage to move to China was one of the best things I ever did.

So, how do I find work?

So, I’ve hyped it up for you…and of course, you now want to go. So where do you start?

I found work through Dave’s eslcafe which is a good place to begin but you may wish to join some Facebook groups or refer to Tefl.com. Just like with any Tefl job – do your research and compare notes. Don’t be afraid to ask others out there what they recommend. I started out on a salary that looked brilliant compared to what I usually earned in Europe, but later discovered I could have doubled that easily. The salary will vary from place to place – if you aim for an academy it might range from 9000-18000 RMB ($1400-$2800) but if you have a PGCE and manage to get an International school position you can earn 23,000 RMB plus ($3500). Most positions will also often come with free accommodation, basic medical care, and a return airfare ticket. If you’d prefer the University route and you have a Masters then these positions can range from fairly low to as high as 23,000 RMB, but to get these higher salaries you will need at least two years of experience. I eventually secured a University role and enjoyed a great work-life balance in the process. Honestly, I never had it so good in this respect. What I could have earned in Europe and the UK in such a position with the easy working schedule – nothing even comes close. And yes, I’ve saved A LOT (not quite the same as Middle-Eastern ‘A LOT’ but it’s definitely still significant).

What are the students like?

Generally, students are respectful and well-behaved in the classroom, if not a little shy. Compared to my students in Spain for example, it has sometimes been a challenge to get students to speak up and you need to be prepared to call on them, to begin with.

The more you get to know them, the more they open up. Children tend to be more boisterous, but they are ever so cute and full of fun and smiles. Some of my favourite students have been found in my classrooms here. Like with any culture you will experience intercultural communication issues so read up on this and be prepared. Some will say that the Chinese can be a little blunt – especially when it comes to how you look. Try not to take it personally. It is not meant to be offensive -it is often out of curiosity or surprise. It is just part and parcel of different cultures and customs.

Where should I live?

China’s cities are divided into 1st tier, new 1st tier, 2nd tier and 3rd tier. 1st tier cities are the likes of Beijing, Shanghai further north and Guangzhou and Shenzhen further south. These are the super-sized cities and salaries will be higher but so will living costs. You can read about this here: The biggest cities in China.com I started out in a city called Quingdao -famous for the Tsingtao beer Tsingtao Brewery. Qingdao is arguably one of the best cities to live in owing to its moderate climate. The further south you go – the hotter the summers with stifling humidity, but when winter comes the humidity stays and most housing lacks suitable infrastructure and decent heating. The further north you go, the colder the winters, but at least you have the central heating, and the summers can still be uncomfortably hot. Qingdao has a free built-in heating system (not those little electric plug-in heaters you have to buy and pay for yourself), and it is not too humid. It is also by the sea and has some great mountains nearby and a strong Korean influence… which means decent Korean barbeque and sushi.

There are many wonderful cities to live in and experience in China. However, you may find you are spoilt for choice.

What to pack and be prepared for?

Be prepared for the Great Firewall. When I announced that I was going to China I was quickly informed that I was crazy by some friends. ‘But they don’t have Facebook, Youtube, Whatsapp!!!’ they all cried. As if my life could not function without such things….
Well, the solution is – you get a VPN. And then your problem is solved. Just maybe get two…they are constantly being overcome. And expect a degree of slowness, it is a well-known side effect. However, I never had any serious problems. What’s more, phone credit and the Internet is super cheap! Plus, you have WeChat (similar to Whatsapp) and many other great apps you can use from local bicycle apps to  Taobao (China’s equivalent to Amazon)

‘But what about censorship?’ was the follow-up question. Well, yes that does exist, but just practice some common sense. Avoid any anti-Chinese sentiment on public platforms that could be viewed negatively and learn some cultural sensitivity. Every country has its problems and I guess it just depends on how passionate you are about this point. When you get there, you will get a better feel of the situation and possibly experience some different perspectives on the matter coming from the Chinese people themselves. You may not agree but ask yourself – are you ready to let it stop you from experiencing a fascinating country, rich with opportunity? It is your own personal call.

As for packing, take your home comforts – decent peanut butter without sugar was a thing for me – but in first-tier cities, you can get most western products at stores such as April Gourmet or Jenny Lou’s or you can order items on Taobao at a price. As a woman, I’d also stress buying your skin and sanitary products before you go….and maybe paracetamol. Apart from this, however, you can buy most things you need out there. Oh, and when you are out there, get a mosquito net for the summer…seriously. You will thank me.

Also, be prepared for a funny tummy potentially if you are sensitive like me – you may wish to invest in some strong probiotics. I recommend OptiBac. You should adjust, but it is always better to be safe than sorry. If you choose to live out in the West where they love their spice, then this is probably even more sage advice.

Finally – the pollution. This is something to consider. I won’t lie – I found it difficult during the winter in Beijing. Beijing is situated in the desert, so the dry climate somehow makes it worse. I found moisturiser, face oil and lip balm to be lifesavers. You will also want to invest in an air purifier when out there – probably more than one. There will be bad days. Take an inhaler if you are also easily affected. However, air pollution is steadily improving, and it is much better than it used to be.

Where should I visit?

Oh boy… There is so much choice – from the Great Wall of China just outside Beijing to the terracotta warriors in Xian… or the famous Ice-festival in Harbin or the romantic toothy mountains of Guilin…and then there are the pandas in Chengdu and the skyscrapers in cities such as Shanghai and Shenzhen. China is vast and after 3 and a half years there is still plenty on my to-do list. You are also super close to North and South Korea, Japan, Taiwan, Vietnam, the Philippines, Mongolia…a travellers paradise awaits at your doorstep – and yes, on your salary you CAN afford it.

Final words

It really is hard to capture all the many things I’d like to say about China but plenty of people have been doing a fantastic job of it long before I came along. If you wish to delve deeper there are some brilliant vloggers out there. Check out some of the channels below.
If you do go – I hope you enjoy it as much as I have. Scaling my own personal Everest left me with an abundance of vivid memories, life-long friends, professional development, increased confidence and a nice deposit I can now put towards buying a house… They say run at the things that scare you – I’m glad I did just that.

By Lauren Gurteen
Blog: efl teacher traveller

Some recommended vlogs:
Blondie in China
Miriam Follin
Barrett
Nico
Rachel meets China
Mexicanos en China

The post Living and teaching in China by Lauren Gurteen appeared first on TEFL Barcelona - TEFL Spain.

In May 2017, I moved to Hangzhou, a beautiful, modern city only 1 hour away from cosmopolitan Shanghai. It was a really smooth transition for me as I had already lived there for 3 months in 2015 so I already had friends there and had already experienced the culture shock. However, I experienced some of it again. I had almost forgotten what it was like to be stared at 24/7, having randomers take photos of you and selfies with you virtually every week, being told you’re beautiful almost every day (which is a nice confidence booster, I’m not going to lie, especially if you’re having a bad day), the spitting on the street, the traffic anarchy, not understanding what people are going on about (obviously this is a technical problem that can be solved if you take the time to learn the language) and the list goes on. These are all somewhat superficial differences though, I realize that what shocked and what continually shocks me the most are the differences in our values system. I do not want to reveal too much as I think it is fun to discover things as you go along but Confucianism is deeply rooted in Chinese society, even nowadays, which means they place a great deal of importance on family, marriage and family relationships in general.

China is very much a collective society (as opposed to individualist Europe and North America) and this is where “Westerners” often clash with Chinese. In China it is very important to give and receive “face.” This essentially means complimenting someone and making them look good in front of others. The opposite is “losing face” which is very humiliating for Chinese precisely because it is a collective society and what other people think of them matters a great deal. It matters to everyone to some extent as we are social beings but even more so in China, which I find ridiculous in certain situations. Nonetheless, your social network, known as “guanxi” in Chinese, is absolutely crucial to ensure your survival in an extremely hierarchical country with a population of 1.4 billion people that has a communist political system but a capitalist economic system. As a foreigner though, “waiguo ren” or “laowai” in Chinese, you’re pretty much a VIP in the country and you will enjoy a series of unearned benefits due to your status as a foreigner. It’s not always fair but the reasons why we are treated this way is because there IS a demand for foreign professionals so the work benefits are often very attractive and most Chinese equate foreigners, particularly Caucasians, to wealth and development, something the country aspires to (although to be honest some Chinese provinces are far more technologically developed than most, if not all, Western countries.)

Regarding my work experience there, I work in a language school for adults as that is my preference, I do not enjoy teaching small children or teenagers much but there is a lot more demand for kindergarten and school teachers and therefore much more competitive salaries. If you enjoy teaching children you will have a LOT of options and the chance to make really good money  in a country where the cost of living is pretty low (lots of kindergarten teachers earn at LEAST 2000€ per month working 40h a week but I know there are people earning that amount or more working 15h or 20h a week in a country where the minimum wage is 300€ and the average salary just under 1000€… and some of them aren’t even native speakers or have a TEFL certificate so do as much research as possible and negotiate!) Having said that, Chinese authorities are stricter now due to a decrease in the quality of teachers and it’s not as easy to get a visa to teach English as a non-native speaker, even with a TEFL certificate, unfortunately. But because China is growing at the speed of light they’re desperate for English teachers to compete in this ever-increasing competitive global market, so there are ways of bypassing all this.

When working for a Chinese company, I strongly advise you to remember which country you’re living in and to abide by their rules. China has a very authoritarian and hierarchical culture and as you can imagine there’s no such thing as “expressing your opinion on a subject matter at work because I have a right to do so”. Only do that if you have a good relationship with the person you wish to express your opinion to and if you have a fair bit of leverage at work (for example, if you’re renewing your contract, you can’t easily be replaced and so on.)

When searching for a job, I suggest you simply type “teach English in China” and you’ll find lots of websites, a particularly good one is eChinacities. I strongly advise you to avoid agencies like ECHO and HAIDA as you’ll earn significantly less than what you would earn if you look for a job yourself, they’re a big scam, just look it up. The average salary is around 15k renminbi before tax but you could potentially earn a LOT more (or a lot less) depending on the company.

In general, living and working in China is a LOT of fun! There will be challenges like the obvious language and cultural barriers but it is a very safe country that is a lot of fun to explore and live in. Travelling in China isn’t as democratized as travelling in Europe is which means there isn’t an array of low-cost flights but there is a very efficient and punctual high-speed train. The train stations themselves aren’t very efficient and they’re always overcrowded, buying a train ticket and getting on the train is always a bit of an odyssey to be frank but you get used to it. The metro system is very efficient in most cities as they are new and getting a taxi is super easy and dirt cheap!  They have the equivalent to Uber, called “Didi.” There is an English version so you don’t even have to speak to the driver, you just enter the address.

Most large cities in China have a big enough expat community so you can feel at home at times and mingle with people from a similar background although I do strongly suggest you mix with locals too in order to make living in China easier and more exciting. Clubbing in China is a lot of fun if you’re into that; it’s a very different experience to clubbing in Europe. However, the staple of Chinese nightlife are KTV (Karaoke) bars! They are everywhere in China and it’s an authentic cultural experience, it’s a good way to mingle with Chinese while they blast away to Chinese pop songs while drinking Tsing Tao beer or bai ji, a traditional Chinese spirit.

I could go on about China for ages as there is a lot to cover and I may have missed some other basic information so if you are considering teaching English in China and would like to find out more or would like me to help you look for a job, please email me at lauradezuloaga@hotmail.com or add me on Instagram: laura.inchina

Laura Zuloaga

The post Teaching English in Hangzhou, China – by TEFL Teacher Laura Zuloaga appeared first on TEFL Barcelona - TEFL Spain.

Have you ever wanted to visit an incense-filled temple on a misty mountain side? Run along the top of the Great Wall of China? Feed pandas with a bamboo pole? If so, teaching in China might be a good choice for you.

After earning my TEFL, I applied to jobs throughout Asia. I was intimidated but intrigued by China. I accepted a job in Huizhou, a small city near Hong Kong. Websites comically described it as “pretty, especially for China.” Later, when my sister graduated from college, we applied to jobs together and were hired by a kindergarten in Beijing. Living and teaching in China was an adventure every day. It was challenging and humbling, but also amusing and amazing.

Teaching English in China – My Experience

In Huizhou, I worked at a language school. We taught Wednesdays through Fridays in the evenings and all day Saturday and Sunday. Monday and Tuesday were our weekend. We were some of the only foreigners in town so the odd work week didn’t restrict our social life too much. In an isolated area, your co-workers will probably also be your best friends.

Teaching in China I taught all levels from kindergarten to middle school for an hour each, totaling 22 hours each week. The school provided books for each level for the teachers and students (while this may seem like an obvious necessity, other schools I’ve considered teaching at didn’t have books or a specific curriculum). We planned and prepared our own lessons. We had lots of training for sharing ideas and methods. I also had a Chinese assistant to help with behaviour, difficult concepts, and parents.

Later, in Beijing, my sister and I worked in a Montessori kindergarten. We worked a normal Monday to Friday work week. I was in one class for the whole day from 8-5. I also had a local Montessori-trained co-teacher and two local assistants. That meant we had four teachers for 24 students! Much of the day was Montessori work time, which meant I had to learn a lot about the Montessori philosophy and how to implement it. We had a week of training before the school year started but much of my training was hands-on in the classroom.

Students in China can be quite reserved at first. Many of them have a hard time with critical thinking and creativity. It was fun to help them test their limits and find new skills. They are diligent workers and caring people.

My kindergarten class in Beijing on Valentine’s Day

Accommodation for English Teachers in China

In Huizhou, the school provided us with housing. The school owned two 5-bedroom apartments side by side. The apartments were a couple of blocks from the school. I shared bathrooms, a living room and a kitchen with the other teachers. The school also provided a cleaner who came twice a week.

In Beijing my sister and I had to find our own accommodation. The school sent us out with a translator and a realtor who showed us a few different options. Unfortunately, the translator quit a couple of weeks later and we never got our deposit back for the apartment. We presume the two events are related. We had a small private apartment and some friendly neighbors, both Chinese neighbors and expats.

What Languages Do English Teachers Need to Speak to Teach in China

In the classroom, I only needed English. Beyond the school walls, however, I was glad to know some Chinese. My school in Huizhou gave us free Chinese lessons once a week.

Chinese calligraphy class

An assistant teacher from the Sichuan province was our Chinese teacher. She carefully explained the tonal language to us. If you have an ear for the tones, Chinese isn’t too tough. They don’t have tenses. Many words are simple and short, or made of a compilation of other short words. I found speaking Chinese to be fun, almost like singing. Chinese people are usually quite impressed when you can speak a few words and more inclined to try to help. It really motivated me to learn more. Also I found in the markets, I could get a cheaper price if I bargained in Chinese. Speaking some of the language really improved my experience in China.

Here are a few key phrases (accent marks show which way your voice should move. I’ve also included my best attempt at spelling out the pronunciation)

n? h?o                                                      nee- how                                    hello

xiè xie                                                    shee-ah, shee-ah                  thank you

duì bù q?                                                dwe boo chee                                sorry

x? sh?u ji?n                                          shee shwo jee-an                      bathroom

n? li                                                       nah lee                                        where (and also there)

Expat Life in China

In Huizhou, I often felt like a celebrity. Random people would shout “hello” from passing cars, across a park, or from the other end of a store. In my spare time, I joined our school’s soccer team, which meant weekly matches and socializing afterward. I also liked walking through the local markets and by Xi Hu (West Lake) and Hong Hua Hu (Red Flower Lake). There was a good nightlife in Huizhou, including bars and clubs. It was busy even on our Monday-Tuesday weekend! There was a WalMart in town and a couple of local grocery stores as well. A couple of months before I left, Starbucks came to Huizhou. I’m sure the small city is modernizing more by the minute.

Huizhou at night

Beijing is packed with people, including loads of expats. This means lots of opportunities for events, clubs, and fun. Hey-robics is a Swedish form of fitness that Linus, the founder’s son, has brought to Beijing. It’s group fitness in a big circle with lots of dance moves, jumping, and wild outfits. They also held a running camp leading up to the Great Wall Marathon (during which I participated in the 10K). There is also a group called MashUp that runs intramural sports, including football, basketball, dodgeball, etc. There is a great magazine called “The Beijinger” that describes upcoming events, new restaurants, local traditions, popular shops, classifieds and more.   Beijing has a café-library called the Book Worm. It has a library of foreign books you can check out as well as many events and good food! There are local grocery stores and foreign food specialty stores. Beijing is a great place to be an expat.

Food in China

Thousand year old eggs, chicken feet, roasted scorpion, and drunken shrimp (served live in local liquor!). These are foods I’d say you have to be daring to try! The Chinese do admittedly have a LOT of bizarre food dishes. There is a humorous saying about Cantonese food: they eat anything with four legs except a table, anything with two legs except man, anything that swims except a submarine, and anything that flies except an airplane.

However, there are also some truly, truly delicious dishes in China that I have to admit I crave regularly. I love Chinese hotpot- a soup cooked at the table that you put your own meats and vegetables into. Sichuan food is infamously spicy and I miss the numbing peppercorns. Macao-style egg tarts are fantastically buttery and flakey. Cantonese dim sum has such an amazing variety of little dumplings and steamed dishes that come around in bamboo baskets stacked high on small carts. Beijing duck is juicy and tender with a perfect pairing of plum sauce and thin pancakes. Noodles are popular everywhere but slightly different in each restaurant. Also, there’s great barbeque on the street! The key to Chinese food is to order carefully. Many restaurants have picture menus, which helps a lot. Before I could speak Chinese, I sometimes had a waiter follow me over to another table so I could point at the dish I wanted! The food in China is so cheap that it’s often less expensive to eat out than to cook at home.

In larger cities, like Beijing and Shanghai, there are also many foreign food choices. Some are “good for China” (like a burrito, maybe it’s not quite right but because you’ve been missing burritos for so long, it’s close enough) and sometimes other options are truly superb! In Beijing, there were lots of restaurants with deals, like half price Monday or free beer Thursday. Keep your eye out!

Transportation in China

In China, there is a great variety of transportation. Within cities, there are usually tons of buses heading in every direction and Google maps can tell you which one to take and how many stops to your destination. Beijing and other major cities also have metro systems. Taxis are cheap too. Partway through my first year, I bought a bicycle. I felt more independent and explored further when I could get around on my own. Some cities also have motorbike taxis. I got so comfortable on them, that I bought an electric scooter once I moved to Beijing.

Gate in a hutong district of Beijing

Travel within China

There are also trains and buses between cities for transportation all over the country. Chinese culture is very unique and absolutely fascinating. Each province has its own style, including food, architecture, dialect and flare. A highlight of living in China is visiting other places in China (and all around Asia). Some of the best known sights in China are the Great Wall of China in Beijing, the Forbidden City in Beijing, the Terracotta Warriors in Xian, the Bund District in Shanghai, Xi Hu lake in Hangzhou, the Yangtze River, the karst rock formations of Guilin, the pandas in Chengdu, the ice festival in Harbin, and Tiger Leaping Gorge in Yunnan. There are quaint villages, intricately designed temples, diverse landscapes, delicious food, and smiling faces waiting in every destination. There is such a wealth of rich experiences to be had in China.

When I went home after teaching in China, I craved rice after a week. I honked my horn as I changed lanes. I relished opportunities to use my zhong-wen language skills in Chinese restaurants, even though the food was never quite the same. I smiled when other people complained about crowds, knowing how much busier it was in China. I watched tourists in San Francisco with longing, missing the excitement of exploring. Warning: if you go abroad and teach in China, you will never see the rest of the world the same. It’s an absolutely unforgettable experience. China is full of life and full of surprises. I learned so much about the culture and so much about myself there. If any or all of this sounds good to you, look into teaching in China!

By Katia Davis                                    

www.teflbarcelona.net

The post Teaching English in China – By Katia Davis                                     appeared first on TEFL Barcelona - TEFL Spain.