No doubt my narrative of the situation, and my poor Mandarin skills, colors my perception.

No, I remember reading similar things on websites intending to prepare the expat for living in China.

But then I also read on the same sites that Chinese students don't like to volunteer answers when they know them. It would embarrass the ones who didn't! But this too, in my experience, has turned out to be false.

Not sure what to make of all this. Perhaps things are changing fast in China. Perhaps the internet advice was misguided or based in some conception of China that may have existed a century ago. Perhaps some other explanation.

Bu zhi dao.

hehe