English as a lingua franca in higher education enables international students to participate in the global academic community. However, for Iraqi students in Indonesia, the use of English is not just a means of communication, but also part of identity negotiation, social adaptation, and cultural integration. This study explores how Iraqi students experience acceptance, resistance, and adaptation in using English in academic and social environments in Indonesia. The three-dimensional narrative inquiry framework (Clandinin & Connelly, 2000) is used as the primary analytical lens to explore how participants' experiences unfold over time, across relational contexts, and within specific physical and institutional settings. The researcher collected data through in-depth interviews to explore Iraqi students' challenges and communication strategies in interacting with lecturers, peers, and the local community. The results show that Iraqi students accept English as an essential academic tool, but they also face resistance in the form of social pressure to understand and use Indonesian and challenges in establishing interactions with local students. Some students showed adaptation through communication strategies such as language simplification, using a combination of English and Indonesian, and adjusting their speaking style. This study addresses the gap in understanding about the experiences of foreign students from Arabic-speaking nations in Indonesian classrooms. The study's results emphasise the value of more inclusive educational strategies in fostering the linguistic integration of international students and raising intercultural awareness in higher education settings.
Nirwana et al. (Mon,) studied this question.
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