A Canadian ESL Teacher in China: A Stranger in a Strange Land

Through a self-study of teacher and teacher education practices, this article explores cultural discontinuities between Canadian teachers and Chinese students enrolled in Canadian offshore schools. The methodology of self-study provides a means to think about, understand and develop teachers' practice in contexts where intercultural diversity impacts on best practice. Strategies and techniques to ameliorate teacher–student interaction, conceptions of teaching and learning, assessment norms, and voluntary and involuntary plagiarism are discussed. The strategies and techniques presented have the potential to contribute to the development of culturally relevant teaching pedagogy which aims to negate cultural discontinuities between teachers and students.