ADDRESSING PEDAGOGICAL CHALLENGES AND COMMUNICATION ADAPTATION IN TEACHING ENGLISH TO INDIAN STUDENTS IN GLOBAL HIGHER EDUCATION

Abstract

The growing mobility of Indian students within global higher education has intensified the need for context-sensitive approaches to English language instruction. Despite a generally strong background in English, many Indian students encounter challenges related to communicative competence, including pronunciation variability, pragmatic norms, discourse organization, and adaptation to diverse academic expectations. This study aims to examine the key pedagogical challenges involved in teaching English to Indian students in international academic contexts and to propose strategies for effective communicative adaptation. The research is grounded in a linguodidactic framework and draws on classroom observations, analysis of student performance, and reflective teaching practice within an international medical university setting. Particular attention is paid to the interaction between prior linguistic experience, culturally shaped communication styles, and the requirements of academic and professional discourse in English-medium instruction environments. The findings indicate that the main difficulties are not related to basic language proficiency, but rather to pragmatic appropriateness, clarity of speech, and flexibility in communicative behavior across intercultural settings. In response, the study highlights the importance of targeted pedagogical interventions, including contextualized vocabulary work, discourse-based tasks, pronunciation training, and role-based communicative modeling. These strategies facilitate the development of adaptive communicative competence and support students’ integration into international academic and professional communities.