SPEAKING CLUB – SPRING TERM (REVISED FINAL SCHEDULE)

Time: Every Tuesday, 16:00–17:00

Format: Conversation-based / no board / no slides

(AI tools will be used selectively to support fluency development, enrich vocabulary, and accelerate speaking practice in a guided and responsible manner.)

Week 1 – 17 February – Abdülhüda Öztop

Level: LOW (B1–B2)

Topic: Talking About Yourself Without Memorizing

Conversation Starters:

• When people ask “Tell me about yourself,” what do you usually say — and why?

• Which part of your identity is hardest to explain in English?

• How does speaking another language change how confident or honest you feel?

Vocabulary Support:

background · interests · strengths · challenges · confidence · experience

AI Component:

Use of AI tools to improve speaking skills: practicing self-introduction prompts with AI, receiving vocabulary suggestions, and comparing AI-generated self-descriptions with authentic personal narratives.

Week 2 – 24 February -- İsmail Kaygısız

Level: HIGH (B2+–C1)

Topic: Identity, Language, and Power

Conversation Starters:

• Do accents affect how seriously people are taken?

• Can language ever be neutral?

• How has English shaped your sense of self?

Vocabulary Support: identity · accent · authority · legitimacy · hierarchy · representation

AI Component:

Exploring algorithmic bias in AI language models: Do AI systems privilege certain accents, dialects, or forms of English? Testing AI responses for neutrality, authority, and hidden hierarchies in language production.

Week 3 – 3 March – Yabancı Diller Level:

LOW (B1–B2)

Topic: Everyday Conversations That Actually Matter

Conversation Starters:

• What makes a conversation feel alive?

• What do you do when a conversation dies?

• Is listening more important than speaking?

Vocabulary Support:

small talk · follow-up · awkward · engage · respond · silence

Week 4 – 10 March – İncihan Hotaman

Level: HIGH (B2+–C1)

Topic: Global Englishes: Who Owns the Language?

Conversation Starters:

• Should British or American English be the standard?

• Do non-native speakers change English?

• Who decides what “good English” is?

Vocabulary Support:

standard · variation · ownership · native speaker · intelligibility · global

AI Component: Examining how AI language models prioritize certain varieties of English; testing AI responses for bias toward “standard” forms; discussing whether AI reinforces native-speaker hierarchies or reflects the plurality of Global Englishes.

Week 5 – 17 March – Yabancı Diller

Level: LOW (B1–B2)

Topic: University Life: Expectations vs Reality

Conversation Starters:

• How did you imagine university before?

• What surprised you most?

• What is rarely talked about?

Vocabulary Support: expectation · reality · workload · pressure · independence · motivation

Week 6 – 24 March – Ali Aşkın

Level: HIGH (B2+–C1)

Topic: The Human Side of Scientists: Life Stories and Emotions

Conversation Starters:

• Do we imagine scientists as objective machines or emotional humans?

• How do personal struggles shape scientific discoveries?

• Can admiration for a scientist influence how we view their work?

Vocabulary Support: curiosity · perseverance · failure · passion · resilience · legacy

Week 7 – 31 March- Basir Omaç

Level: LOW (B1–B2)

Topic: Movies, Series, and Why We Watch Them

Conversation Starters:

• What kind of stories do you prefer?

• Do films influence identity?

• Alone or together?

Vocabulary Support:

genre · character · storyline · relatable · entertainment · escape

Week 8 – 7 April – Civan Lezgin

Level: HIGH (B2+–C1)

Topic: Cultural Representation in Film and Media Conversation Starters:

• Who is invisible in media?

• Can representation be authentic?

• How do films shape perceptions?

Vocabulary Support: stereotype · visibility · narrative · misrepresentation · power · perspective

Week 9 – 14 April – Çağlar Mert Aydın

Level: LOW (B1–B2)

Topic: Music, Mood, and Memory

Conversation Starters:

• What music helps you relax?

• A song linked to memory?

• Lyrics or melody?

Vocabulary Support:

mood · emotion · memory · nostalgia · rhythm · lyrics

AI Component: Exploring AI-generated music and personalized playlists; discussing how algorithms connect music to mood and memory, and whether AI can truly “understand” emotional experience or simply predict listening patterns.

Week 10 – 21 April – Zamire İzzetgil

Level: HIGH (B2+–C1)

Topic: Literature as Resistance or Comfort Conversation Starters:

• Can literature change minds?

• Escape or confrontation?

• Should literature be political?

Vocabulary Support: resistance · comfort · interpretation · ideology · empathy · meaning

AI Component: Examining AI-generated literary texts and interpretations; debating whether AI can produce politically meaningful literature or merely replicate existing ideological patterns; discussing authorship, intention, and critical reading in the age of generative AI.

Week 11 – 28 April – Sezai Özel

Level: LOW (B1–B2)

Topic: Social Media: Helpful or Harmful?

Conversation Starters:

• How does social media affect mood?

• Connection or isolation?

• What if it disappeared?

Vocabulary Support: comparison · anxiety · connection · distraction · identity · validation

Week 12 – 5 May – Erkan Polat

Level: HIGH (B2+–C1)

Topic: Studying Literature in the Age of AI Conversation Starters:

• How should AI be used in academia?

• Does AI change originality?

• What can literature still offer?

Vocabulary Support: originality · authorship · ethics · automation · interpretation · creativity

Week 13 – 12 May – Servet Balıkçı Level:

LOW (B1–B2)

Topic: Travelling Dreams and Travel Disasters

Conversation Starters:

• Dream destination?

• Culture shock?

• Place or experience?

Vocabulary Support: destination · experience · culture shock · plan · adventure · mistake

AI Component: AI vs Human Travel Planning: Making the Right Choice — comparing AI-generated travel itineraries with personal planning; discussing personalization, reliability, and whether algorithmic suggestions enhance or limit authentic travel experiences. 

19 May – NO SESSION (Official Holiday)

26 May – NO SESSION (Official Holiday)

Week 14 – 2 June – M. Ertuğ Yavuz

Level: HIGH (B2+–C1)

Topic: The Idea of Home: Place, Memory, Belonging

Conversation Starters:

• What is home beyond place?

• More than one home?

• Memory and belonging?

Vocabulary Support: belonging · displacement · memory · attachment · roots · identity

AI Component: The reflections of home in AI — exploring how digital platforms and AI systems archive memories, shape identity, and simulate belonging; discussing whether algorithmic memory can replicate emotional attachment and the meaning of “home.”

Week 15 – 9 June – Pelin Doğan-Özger (Ayşegül Demir ve Abdulkadir Hamarat)

Level: MIXED / CLOSING SESSION

Topic: Future Selves: Career, Precarity, Hope

Conversation Starters:

• Five years from now?

• Biggest worry?

• What keeps you hopeful?

Vocabulary Support: future · career · uncertainty · precarity · aspiration · resilience

AI Component: Exploring AI and the future of work — discussing automation, shifting career landscapes, and digital precarity; reflecting on how AI may shape professional identities, opportunities, and new forms of resilience in an uncertain future.