Large numbers of students from the Chinese-speaking world are nowadays enrolled in Western universities, prompting the need for awareness of their educational beliefs and practices. Although an established literature seeks to characterize "the Chinese learner", much of this research results in stereotypical representations of a "reduced Other": passive, uncritical and over-reliant on the instructor. This paper, which is based on ethnographic research conducted in universities in the People's Republic of China, aims to illuminate some of the common misperceptions of Chinese educational cultures.