What is Coherence and Cohesion in the IELTS?

Writers and speakers are very careful when they create their masterpieces or speak in public. They make sure that they have a good storyline, a careful development of their characters, and even the age of their readers or listeners. These are just some of the things they need to consider when writing or speaking. In connection to writing essays and speaking, anyone should bear in mind the different criteria in coming up with a good response. Two of the most important things to think about are cohesion and coherence. What are these two?

Coherence is the skill of an individual to create a logical link among the ideas within the response. This means that the answer is logically organized, easy to follow and comprehension will not be a problem. How can one achieve coherence in a response? The vital part in coherence is planning. When responding, candidates need to think of a logical structure or an outline of their ideas. The structure should be given emphasis in the answer. Always remember to have a plan.

Additionally, cohesion plays an important role in the responses. Once coherence is observed, cohesion or the effectiveness of the relationships of the ideas presented through correct connection of ideas is achieved as well. The use of transition words is always recommended. However, candidates are cautioned not to overuse these words and make use of them in various ways.

What happens to an essay without these two?

When these two are absent in a response, there is no clear connection among the ideas presented. Ideas are messy that results to a confused reader or the listener. Simply say, the piece of this response makes no sense at all. There is no clear flow or the link between ideas is ambiguous. In IELTS, outputs without these two gets a low score. Hence, candidates need to be very careful in developing their ideas in their responses.

Achieving these two requires practice. While practicing, be aware of the number of times transitional phrases are used. In addition, review the lists of expressions that can be used and think whether these will sound good in your response. Some candidates choose to take review classes which are recommended. Review classes have lectures on how to improve one’s cohesion and coherence through different exciting activities.
Coherence and cohesion are like twins in a response. These two complement each other and once one is missing, the content is affected. Therefore, candidates for the IELTS need to be aware on the importance of these two in making responses for the IELTS.

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