What is Free Discussion Class? | Everything About Discussion | Iran-Australia Language Institute
A Free Discussion Class is a dynamic environment where language learners can actively practice speaking skills by exchanging ideas on a specific topic. This interactive class focuses on expressing opinions, sharing perspectives, reaching consensus, solving problems, and exploring different aspects of an issue in English.
What Skills Are Developed in a Free Discussion Class?
In a free discussion class, learners enhance a wide range of skills, including communication, critical thinking, language fluency, and self-confidence in speaking. Students learn to express their views effectively, listen actively, and respond thoughtfully to others by discussing various topics.
Moreover, these classes promote social and interpersonal growth as learners explore multiple dimensions of a topic, collaborate toward agreement, or work together to solve a problem. The ultimate goal is to create a setting that nurtures intellectual and linguistic development through meaningful conversation.
What Is the Purpose of Free Discussion Classes?
Most English learners' primary objective is to speak fluently and naturally. Communicating confidently in English is often viewed as the ultimate sign of mastery and command over grammar, listening, writing, and speaking skills.
The number of words needed for fluency varies depending on one’s goals and language. A native speaker typically knows between 15,000 and 20,000 word families, whereas long-term learners in non-native environments may struggle to acquire more than 2,000 to 3,000 words.
Can You Master a Language Just by Memorizing Vocabulary?
Although vocabulary is the core of every language, memorizing words alone does not improve fluency. If we imagine language learning as a tree, vocabulary represents the leaves, while grammar, context, and collocations form the branches that connect them.
In linguistics, this connection is known as a word family, and it’s one of the key foundations of proper language comprehension. For instance, if a learner looks up the Persian word for “بازی,” they might find several English equivalents: game, play, fun. Each has its own word family: the word play relates to plays, played, player, and playing. Mastering a large number of such word families significantly accelerates the process of learning to speak English fluently.
How Many Words Do You Need to Speak a Language Fluently?
According to several linguistic studies, the approximate number of words needed for fluent speech is as follows:
- 1,000–1,500 words for beginner level
- Around 3,000 words for intermediate level (sufficient to use an English dictionary)
- Up to 8,000 words for near-native or bilingual fluency
How Does the Iran-Australia Language Institute Conduct Its Free Discussion Classes?
At the Iran-Australia Language Institute, each instructor is assigned specific KPIs (Key Performance Indicators) based on their expertise in leading thought-provoking discussions. The top-performing instructors are invited to exclusive brainstorming sessions with the management team.
These sessions review the most stimulating and relevant discussion topics that encourage learners to speak and think critically. Of many suggestions, only eight topics are selected for each course term. Each instructor chooses one topic that best suits their mindset, personality, and teaching style.
Over eight sessions, learners are exposed to diverse linguistic and cognitive approaches to prevent cognitive bias and conditioned thinking. Each instructor also prepares a topic-specific PDF containing background information, advanced grammar points, and new vocabulary, which is shared with students before the session.
How to Choose a Topic for Free Discussion?
Topics in a Free Discussion class may include social, ethical, psychological, or moral issues. At Iran-Australia, the key criterion for topic selection is universality, ensuring that all participants can emotionally and intellectually relate to the subject being discussed.
Participants of Iran-Australia’s special Free Discussion program, Golden Talk, assured
They are attending the best Free Discussion class in Tehran. Having successfully conducted 21 rounds of these sessions, Iran-Australia remains the only institute in Iran that runs Free Discussion programs based on professional and standardized frameworks.
Here, you can view some from the 21st Golden Talk course held at the Valiasr branch. In addition, topics from the Resalat branch’s Golden Talk sessions are available on this page.
Who Can Join the Golden Talk Free Discussion Course in Iran-Australia?
To participate in the Golden Talk Free Discussion Course at the Iran-Australia Language Institute, learners must have at least an Intermediate level of English. The Free Discussion class is a capstone experience and a practical test of all previously acquired language skills.
These sessions are taught by the institute’s most experienced and skilled instructors, who focus on teaching, refining, and correcting what students have already learned. To determine which level suits you best, take a placement test or contact us today.
