“Do you eat dog meat and monkey? . . . I didn’t know anything about China back then”: Problematising Chinese heritage students through the lens of critical interculturality

Abstract

Universities throughout the world contain people of Chinese heritage studying, researching or working in higher educational institutions. This paper offers a case study example from a higher education institution in China in analysing the fluctuating identity positions of Chinese heritage students. From a critical intercultural perspective, the study explores Chinese heritage students’ reflexivity about perceptions of their own Chineseness and foreignness. The paper argues against labeling or categorizing Chinese heritage students as local or international students as the notions are biased insofar that they negate the possibility for identity. Thus, a critical intercultural lens is used as a way to problematise a deeper engagement into dialogues about the self and the other. The paper also problematises the implications the study has for teacher education in terms of attempting to move beyond essentialist logics and practices in how Chinese heritage students are understood and researched.