Hi there! I’m

Alexandra Bazrafshan

I was born and raised in Toronto, Canada, one of the most multicultural cities in the country – and the world.  I was surrounded by various languages – Tagalog and Farsi through the family – and French Immersion from kindergarten through grade 12.  I continued French Studies in university, with the goal that I would work as a French teacher after graduating.

However, in university, I quickly began to seek out opportunities to explore other parts of the world.  I traveled on school holidays whenever possible, and after backpacking in Europe in 2015, I realized I didn’t just want to visit on short trips… I wanted to know what it was like to live in different places. 

In 2016, I spent six weeks in Trois-Rivières, Quebec, participating in Explore, a French language immersion program.  I attended language classes in the mornings, skills workshops in the afternoons, and cultural activities throughout the evenings.  Not only did I strengthen my language, I also got a taste for life experiences outside of Toronto.

A year later, I was accepted to one of York University’s 2017 global summer internships.  I spent three months in the small beach town of Nature’s Valley, South Africa, interning with an NGO, Nature’s Valley Trust.  I assisted with their environmental education programs at local elementary schools, as well as marine debris data collection and estuary surveying.  Through this internship, I was able to develop my skills in the researching field, and gain my first experience teaching students in another culture and country from my own. 

I couldn’t shake the feeling that I wanted to experience international teaching again.  In my last year of university, I learned about Maple Leaf Educational Systems, which is the largest system of British Columbia offshore schools.  Just before graduating in 2018, I applied, interviewed, and was hired as a teacher.  Later that summer, I moved to China and the adventure began…

Five years later, I’m still here! 

Alexandra Bazrafshan