teaching english in argentina

[KatharineAnn]

"Like the others said..."

If you are going to teach English to Spanish speakers please do not make grammatical mistakes.....AS I SAID!

Haha, excuse me? I don´t see any grammatical mistakes in what I wrote. I really was referring to what others had said previously.

And also, EXCUSE me? Even if I had made a mistake, do English teachers have to be perfect now? We spend all day 5 days a week talking to non-native speakers, and almost never talk to a native speaker, and you expect us to never pick up any Spanglishisms? Well I´ll excuse that haughty remark on the assumption that you´ve never taught English, because I have had a number of English-teacher friends here, and they all confess that it happens to them. And as a linguist, I can assure you that it is also a completely natural process. This is also, in part, why many institutes prefer English speakers who do not know Spanish - they are less prone to these mutations.

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Holas, to answer your question, I think a flatshare would be your best bet on an English teacher´s salary. You would not be able to afford your own apartment here, especially if it is a temporary rental, furnished, etc, if your only income are English classes. If you´re willing to share a place with others, I recommend: www.compartodepto.com It´s like Easyroommate, but for here

There is generally a lot of job-changing here. You will probably work for more than one institute, as it isn´t too common that one institute alone will give you a full work load (20-30 hours a week). If you´re happy with your classes/institutes, your classes should last until December, unless they are test prep classes, in which case your classes could be as short as 2 or 3 months long. It really varies.

 

[Italia311]

Most of what Mendoza said is correct. However, it is very possible to make enough to live on teaching English. This does, of course, depend COMPLETELY on your standards of living. Standards of living here are nowhere near as high as in the US or Europe, and if you want to live here with the same standards of living as there, you will definitely need to put some of your own money from savings or whatnot...

Bang On.

@Katharine: I also make mistakes from time to time. No worries.

 

[AgentSebas]

you can contact www.in-english.com.ar very well known training company

 

[Zenobia]

You're a lot more likely to get a job with certification. That said, I finished my TEFL course in November and I still don't have a job. So it depends.

 

[jp]

Haha, excuse me? I don´t see any grammatical mistakes in what I wrote.

Beware the grammar nazis.

All impurities must be expunged.

 

[holas1]

Thanks everyone for all the useful info.

It's cleared up stuff that I couldn't get an adequate answer for.

Cheers!

 

[cujodu]

I've never had anyone ask to see my credentials here for teaching English. Pretty much your sole qualification is that you're a native speaker. But if you have qualifications it's better, if not only in that it will make you a better teacher. I hear rent is very expensive for foreigners, and I know everywhere I go they always try to overcharge me when they realize I'm American. I won't shop anywhere that doesn't clearly display the prices. But luckily I know the owner of my apartment and the rent is actually a bit low for my area. I would not anticipate making enough money to support yourself by teaching English here. Especially given the current economic crisis, many of the companies I teach in are cutting back. The summer was dismal with hardly any students. I've always had to supplement my expenses here with my savings from the USA. If you can arrange a job prior to arriving you'd be in a better situation, but some are reluctant to hire anyone if they're not here in the country for the simple facts that there seem to be enough teachers already here, and that they can't be sure you'll actually be coming. I hope that helps, I think it's a great experience to be here, I'm basically here because of my relationship with an Argentine and hopefully we'll get out of here soon. Not that I don't like it here but I'm not about all the noise, I'm country.

 

[mendozanow]

Like he said.

Same experience in Mendoza cujodu

 

[Conorworld]

There is a woman who writes a blog from BA. She is from the US and she is doing something similar to what you are considering. Her blog i mentioned here in the Daily URL's at times:
yillabean.blogspot.com
She even writes down her daily expenditure which is pretty interesting. It might be a good idea to contact her.

 

[yillabean]

i've been in buenos aires for 4 months now. i arrived in the beginning of summer when there was no work (i understood that before i arrived). nevertheless i sent out 20-25 resumes in december. in then end of january i got a call for a job (only one call). since january i've been givin more students as time goes on. i am currently teaching 13 students with the promise of teaching more come april.

it's true that the employer wants you here in buenos aires before they interview you.

i'm paid 26 pesos for just conversation classes, i don't teach grammar. i've gone on other interviews where i have been offered 13 pesos and 20 pesos. i did not accept these low offers.

two of my students have passed my name along, so i now have 2 private students. i hope to get more as time goes by.

before coming here, i thought i would live off my teachers salary and not touch my savings, but that is not true. i've been using my savings since i arrived.

the reason it's not possible to work full-time is because, generally speaking, you have to travel / walk to the next student's office. it's rare that you would get a bunch of students all in one location for a full-work load. also students cancel their classes because they have to travel or have a meeting. 20-30 hours a week is realistic.

if you aren't planning on taking any certification (which i found helpful) than i would suggest that you volunteer to teach esl at your local ymca or church for the experience.

if you have a month of weekends available, i would strongly suggest taking a TESOL /TESL / TEFL certification through Oxford Seminars. it was less expensive than other certifications and i was impressed the with material and the classes were fun too. http://www.oxfordseminars.com/

if you'll just be teaching english and not wanting to touch your savings there is no way you can afford your own place, unless you want to live in a seedy area. room shares in nice neighborhoods are from $350-500 a month. I've seen room shares on craigslist for $250 a month but as a woman, I would not want to live in the neighborhood where the room is.

plan on having savings to back you up, especially for the first months until you find a job and pick up private students.

for what it's worth, i have no regrets moving here. i'm very happy.