Oh yes, I have done exactly that, taking a few of the parents with me to tutor their kids at home. With regards to the visa thing, they promised me a dozen times to get me one, even had my passport for sometime while they were "getting it", passport was returned with a "Sorry, cant for now will try after new year". Many of the schools here in Beijing say they will get you a visa once you have signed with them, I do not know a single school that will get you a visa prior to signing a contract with them and prior to starting working for them, if you are already in China. I have friends who have been able to get the documents to get a Z visa whilst they sat at home back in the UK for 2 to 3 months. I cannot afford to "sit at home" and wait for months, either here or in the UK, hence the need to earn an income to pay rent, food, etc, thus hence the need to work on a tourist visa until the school gets me a real visa. Besides here in Beijing, well in this Dell School, ALL our teachers (about 40 or so) are only on tourist or business F visas and have been for years.