This paper is based on data gathered during visits to Uganda and Malawi, conducted by the International Math-teacher Professionalization Using Lesson Study (IMPULS) project and the Japanese International Cooperation Agency (JICA). The author's observations and experiences highlighted misconceptions about lesson study. The paper concludes that some key factors can be viewed as either affordances, or constraints, on practice, while others are best understood against several misconceptions that seem to be common outside Japan.