Spain - TEFL in Spain
The capital and largest city is Madrid (pop 3.5 million) with cosmopolitan Barcelona being the next major city.
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Economics
During the recent economic crisis the country has suffered badly and there is a very high level of unemployment. This has meant that some private schools have had to close down and there is slightly less demand for English teachers than there used to be.
However, Spain has one of the lowest English speaking populations within Europe so work is still to be found if you are qualified and are a native speaker. And as the country recovers from the economic problems over the next few years this work will increase.
School System
Some state schools offer bilingual education to their students as do many nursery schools. With the right background teachers can get good work here. Each region of Spain has their own requirements for teaching in these schools so if this is of interest, you should contact the local education authorities in the region to see what is available and what their requirements are.
Outside this are the private schools. This is where most work can be had teaching General English, English for Tourism and Business English. The requirements to teach in a private school are often less strict than a state school: usually a degree and a TEFL Certificate such as the ICAL TEFL Certificate are necessary.
Jobs tend to be either in one of the local private schools or teaching privately. Often working for a school you will find the pay is fairly poor and you'll be overworked, however if it's your first year in Spain then this is a lot easier than having to go there cold and find private lessons through word of mouth.
Obviously the bigger cities (Barcelona, Madrid, Seville) provide more opportunities and it's also useful since you'll meet more expat teachers as well to get to know the scene.
The private schools themselves vary in quality. A great deal of emphasis is placed on the written word rather than spoken English. In class, the main issue is unmotivated students and sometimes you will have to work hard to get the students participating.
When to Go
Spain tends to close down during August (and is quiet in July as well) so there's no point looking for work then. September (and to a lesser extent, October) is when it all begins for the new year. Having said this, there are Summer Teaching Camps in Spain but these usually run off the back of schools who will offer the work to their own teachers first.
Schools mostly hold interviews at the beginning and end of Summer for new teachers. Many schools in Spain rely on teachers arriving on spec so there is certainly a chance to find work if you just get over to Spain, set yourself up and walk the streets for work.
There may be work available in the new year; some teachers will have left their schools and private individuals have made a resolution to learn some English!
Cost of Living & Salary
Average pay is around 1,000 - 1,200 euro per month.
Accommodation costs vary from city to city but as a rough idea, you can pay between 150 - 300 euro per month for a single room or 500 - 700 per month for a one bedroom flat. Everyday costs, however, are quite cheap (e.g. food, transport, etc).
See Also
The Ministry of Education in Spain offers a special program to North American teachers to work in Spain for a year. For more information, see thee MoE - Spain program.
A similar programme is the CAPS (Conversation Assistant Programme) available to European teachers which is privately run.
