Coherence and Cohesion – What Does it REALLY Mean?

Summary

In this video, David from TED-IELTS explains the often misunderstood concepts of coherence and cohesion, essential for scoring well in the IELTS writing test. He highlights the differences between the two: coherence refers to organizing ideas on a larger scale, while cohesion involves sentence-level connections. David discusses the importance of paragraphing, progression, and proper use of cohesive devices, cautioning against overuse. He also emphasizes the need for referencing and how clear organization, planning, and overall language skills are crucial for achieving a high score in the IELTS writing exam.

Takeaways

• 📊 25% of your IELTS writing score is based on coherence and cohesion, which is as important as vocabulary, grammar, and answering the question properly.
• 🧩 Coherence refers to the clear relationship between ideas at the paragraph level, while cohesion focuses on the connection between sentences.
• 📝 To achieve a high score, your essay should have logical paragraphs and sentences that flow together naturally.
• 🧐 Many IELTS candidates, tutors, and even examiners find coherence and cohesion challenging, as shown by a 2008 study.
• 📝 There are five key factors for scoring well in coherence and cohesion: organization, progression, cohesive devices, referencing, and paragraphing.
• 🚀 Progression means guiding the reader logically from an introduction to a conclusion, with body paragraphs that build on previous ideas.
• 🔗 Cohesive devices, such as 'however' and 'meanwhile,' should be used correctly and sparingly to connect ideas without overuse.
• 💬 Referencing, which involves avoiding repetition by using pronouns and synonyms, is critical to achieving coherence.
• 📚 Good paragraphing means each paragraph should focus on one clear idea, and the sentences should support that idea.
• 🔄 Problems with grammar or vocabulary can affect coherence and cohesion, so improving these areas is essential for a high IELTS score.

Q & A

What are coherence and cohesion, and why are they important in the IELTS writing test?

Coherence and cohesion refer to how well your ideas are linked together in an essay. Coherence focuses on the larger connection of ideas, typically at the paragraph level, while cohesion focuses on how sentences flow together. In the IELTS writing test, coherence and cohesion account for 25% of the score, making them essential for achieving a high band.

How do coherence and cohesion differ from each other?

Coherence refers to the clarity of the relationship between parts of an essay, typically focusing on the connection of ideas at the paragraph level. Cohesion, on the other hand, deals with how sentences within a paragraph stick together through the use of cohesive devices like linking words and references.

Why do many IELTS candidates and even examiners struggle with the concept of coherence and cohesion?

IELTS candidates and examiners struggle with coherence and cohesion due to the complex and often misunderstood language used in the band descriptors. A 2008 study revealed that examiners found coherence and cohesion the hardest part of the writing test to mark, partly because of this complexity.

What are the five key factors to achieving a good score for coherence and cohesion in IELTS writing?

The five key factors for a high score in coherence and cohesion are organization, progression, cohesive devices, referencing, and paragraphing (especially in task 2). These elements ensure that ideas flow logically, are clearly connected, and are grouped appropriately in the essay.

What does 'progression' mean in the context of IELTS writing, and how can you improve it?

Progression refers to guiding the reader from the beginning to the end of the essay in a logical manner. It involves setting up the topic in the introduction, developing ideas in the body, and summarizing them in the conclusion. To improve progression, writers should ensure each sentence and paragraph builds logically on the previous one.

What are cohesive devices, and how should they be used in an IELTS essay?

Cohesive devices are words or phrases used to connect ideas and sentences, such as 'however,' 'therefore,' and 'moreover.' They should be used sparingly and accurately to avoid making the essay sound artificial. Overuse or misuse of cohesive devices can negatively impact the essay’s flow and coherence.

How does referencing improve cohesion in an essay?

Referencing involves using pronouns or synonyms to refer back to previous words or phrases, which helps avoid repetition and makes the text more fluid. Proper referencing enhances cohesion by linking ideas together and ensuring the essay reads more smoothly.

Why is paragraphing important in IELTS writing, especially in task 2?

Paragraphing is crucial because it helps to organize ideas logically, ensuring that each paragraph focuses on one main idea. In IELTS task 2, clear and well-structured paragraphs demonstrate coherence and make the essay easier for the reader to follow. Proper paragraphing is essential for higher band scores.

How can poor grammar or vocabulary affect your score for coherence and cohesion?

Poor grammar or vocabulary can make sentences unclear, leading to a lack of coherence and cohesion. If the reader cannot understand the sentences, the overall structure and flow of ideas are disrupted. This can prevent you from achieving a score higher than band 6, even if the essay is otherwise well-organized.

What are some strategies to improve coherence and cohesion in IELTS writing?

To improve coherence and cohesion, it’s recommended to plan your essay before writing, read a variety of English articles to observe how native speakers structure ideas, and practice using cohesive devices appropriately. Focusing on logical organization and progression of ideas is also key to improving your writing score.

Outlines

00:00

🎓 Introduction to Coherence and Cohesion in IELTS

David introduces the topic of coherence and cohesion in the IELTS writing test, explaining that it is more complex than many assume, even for IELTS examiners. He emphasizes that 25% of the IELTS writing score comes from coherence and cohesion, which involves linking ideas effectively. He promises to explain how to score well in this area and recommends watching the entire video to fully benefit from the information provided.

05:05

🧩 Understanding Coherence and Cohesion

David delves into the meanings of coherence and cohesion, citing Cambridge Dictionary definitions. Coherence refers to the logical flow of ideas in paragraphs, while cohesion focuses on sentence-level connections. He explains that achieving a high score in this area requires strong paragraph structure and fluid sentence transitions. He also mentions that IELTS band descriptors help clarify the criteria, but they can be difficult to interpret due to ambiguous wording.

10:07

📈 Organization and Progression in Essays

David discusses the importance of organization in an essay. Essays with low band scores often have poor or random structure, whereas higher-scoring essays are logically divided. He explains how organizing ideas into paragraphs and ensuring smooth progression throughout the essay is key. Progression means guiding the reader through the essay in a logical manner, from introduction to conclusion, ensuring that each part builds upon the previous one.

15:09

🔗 Proper Use of Cohesive Devices

David addresses the use of cohesive devices and how overusing or misusing them can harm the clarity of an essay. He warns against artificial-sounding essays filled with cohesive devices at the beginning of every sentence, which could cap the score at a band 5. Instead, he advocates for using cohesive devices sparingly and accurately, ensuring they enhance rather than detract from the overall flow of ideas.

🔄 Importance of Referencing in IELTS Writing

David introduces the concept of referencing, explaining how it helps avoid repetition by replacing nouns with pronouns or synonyms. Effective referencing enhances the coherence of the essay by clarifying the relationships between ideas. He highlights the importance of using singular and plural references correctly to avoid confusion and recommends paying close attention to referencing when reading English articles.

📝 The Art of Paragraphing

David emphasizes that a well-structured essay should have clear and distinct paragraphs, with each paragraph representing one main idea. He explains that introductory and concluding paragraphs serve specific functions, while body paragraphs require internal structure to support their central idea. This involves a topic sentence followed by supporting details, examples, or hypothetical situations to maintain paragraph unity.

🚫 The Impact of Language on Coherence and Cohesion

David concludes by explaining that language skills play a significant role in achieving high scores for coherence and cohesion. Even well-structured essays can lose clarity if grammar or vocabulary issues interfere with understanding. He refers to an IELTS examiner's guide that highlights the overlap between different marking criteria, cautioning that poor language skills can limit a candidate's score in this area.

📚 Final Tips for Improving Coherence and Cohesion

David offers final recommendations for improving coherence and cohesion in IELTS writing. He suggests reading English articles to observe how native speakers organize ideas and use cohesive devices. Planning before writing is crucial for ensuring proper organization and progression. He advises mastering referencing skills and warns against over-reliance on cohesive devices to achieve a higher score in this section.

Keywords

💡Coherence

Coherence refers to the logical flow of ideas in an essay or written piece. In the video, coherence is defined as the clear relationship between parts, meaning how well the overall structure of the essay leads the reader from one idea to another. For example, coherence in an IELTS essay would be seen in how paragraphs build upon each other to form a clear argument.

💡Cohesion

Cohesion means the use of linguistic devices to connect sentences and ideas at a smaller, more detailed level. It refers to how sentences are linked together within paragraphs. The video describes cohesion as important for ensuring smooth transitions between sentences, using devices such as conjunctions, pronouns, and transitional phrases like 'however' or 'therefore'.

💡Band Descriptors

Band descriptors are official guidelines used by IELTS examiners to assess the different components of an essay. They provide detailed explanations of what is required to achieve each score band. In the video, the speaker explains how the descriptors for coherence and cohesion vary across band scores and what differentiates a Band 5 essay from a Band 7 essay in terms of organization, progression, and use of cohesive devices.

💡Organization

Organization refers to how ideas are structured and arranged within an essay. In the video, this concept is discussed in terms of ensuring ideas are logically divided into paragraphs and presented in a way that makes sense to the reader. For example, an essay that discusses two opposing views would organize those views into separate paragraphs.

💡Progression

Progression is the logical development of ideas within an essay, guiding the reader from an introduction to a conclusion. The video highlights that essays lacking in progression fail to build logically from one point to another, leading to confusion. A well-progressed essay introduces a topic, discusses it, and then concludes the discussion in a clear manner.

💡Cohesive Devices

Cohesive devices are words or phrases that link sentences and paragraphs together. In the video, cohesive devices are emphasized as crucial for clarity, but their overuse can lead to disjointed writing. Examples include conjunctions like 'and', 'but', and 'however'. The speaker cautions against using too many cohesive devices, as it can make an essay sound unnatural.

💡Referencing

Referencing in this context means using pronouns or synonyms to avoid repetition in writing. The video explains that referencing is important for keeping writing concise and avoiding redundancy. For instance, instead of repeating a noun multiple times, you could use pronouns like 'it', 'this', or 'they' to refer back to previously mentioned ideas.

💡Paragraphing

Paragraphing refers to dividing an essay into clear sections, each focused on a single idea. The video stresses that good paragraphing means ensuring each paragraph contains one main idea and supports it with relevant information. In IELTS Task 2, paragraphs are essential for organizing arguments, with each body paragraph addressing a specific aspect of the question.

💡Thesis Statement

A thesis statement is a sentence in the introduction of an essay that clearly states the writer's position or the main point of the essay. The video mentions that a strong thesis statement is key to good progression, as it sets up what the reader can expect in the rest of the essay. Without a clear thesis, an essay might seem aimless or disorganized.

💡Synonyms

Synonyms are words that have the same or similar meanings to other words. In the video, synonyms are discussed in the context of referencing, where using synonyms can help avoid repetition and improve cohesion. For example, if you mention 'coherence' once, you might later refer to it as 'clarity' to avoid repeating the same term.

Highlights

Coherence and cohesion are crucial for 25% of the IELTS writing score.

Coherence refers to the logical connection of ideas, while cohesion involves linking sentences effectively.

IELTS examiners often struggle with marking coherence and cohesion due to its complexity.

Band 5 essays may lack progression, while Band 7 essays have clear progression and logical organization.

Cohesive devices should be used accurately and sparingly; overuse can weaken essay quality.

Referencing, or replacing words with pronouns and synonyms, helps avoid repetition and improves clarity.

Good paragraphing involves grouping ideas logically, with each paragraph focusing on a single idea.

A common problem in Band 5 essays is poor paragraph structure, leading to a disjointed reading experience.

Progression means guiding the reader from a clear introduction to a logical conclusion in both essays and reports.

IELTS band descriptors for task 1 and task 2 emphasize different criteria, with task 2 focusing more on complex paragraphing.

Cohesive devices should only be used when necessary, avoiding mechanical placement that could confuse the reader.

Problems with language skills can negatively impact coherence and cohesion, limiting the overall score.

Misuse of cohesive devices, such as combining two devices or using them inappropriately, can reduce clarity.

Reading formal essays and articles can help understand how native speakers use coherence, cohesion, and referencing.

Planning before writing helps ensure proper organization, progression, and paragraphing in the IELTS essay.

Transcripts

Hi, this is David at TED-IELTS,

and today I want to talk to you about coherence and cohesion.

Yes, yes.

I bet you think you already know what it means, but this video might surprise you.

In fact, I'm sure it will,

because according to research that I will explain in a moment,

even IELTS examiners don't always fully understand coherence and cohesion.

As you can see then it is a lot more complicated than most people think.

So I'm going to spend a little time talking about what it really means and how

you can get a high score for that section of the IELTS writing test.

As always, I've divided this video into chapters, so if you're short on time,

you can just skip ahead to the section that interests you the most.

However, I do recommend watching the whole video in order to get the most benefit.

Also, if you have trouble understanding

me, then you can turn on the subtitles using the settings icon below.

Again, though, it might be better for your

listening practice if you try to understand what I'm saying without them.

OK, let's begin our lesson.

Whether you take the academic or general test in both task 1 and task2

of the writing exam, 25% of your score will

come from something called coherence and cohesion.

This is the same a vocabulary,

grammar and answering the question properly,

so obviously it is very important.

But what does it mean?

Generally speaking, coherence and cohesion

means how well your ideas are linked together.

Most people think of it as structure, but this is a little too limited and it is

in fact a bigger and more complicated idea than that.

After all, you could probably learn

the basics of structure in less than 1 hour.

Perhaps we should first consider what

those two words mean because they're not exactly the same.

Coherence is defined by the Cambridge Dictionary as a clear

relationship between parts, while cohesion means the state of sticking together.

In my 2019 book, How to Write the Perfect Essay for IELTS,

I explain that coherence means the connection of ideas on a larger scale,

while cohesion means connection at a sentence level.

You could think of it another way.

Coherence refers to your paragraphs,

and cohesion is about how you link your sentences together.

And that's a pretty good summary if I do say so myself.

So from that we can gather that a high

score in coherence and cohesion requires having your ideas put logically

into paragraphs and having your sentences flow together in an intuitive way.

It's all about the organization of your ideas.

Now we have a general idea of what coherence and cohesion means,

let's look at the band descriptors to get a better understanding.

These are freely available on the IELTS

and British Council websites, but actually they're quite difficult to understand,

and this causes various problems.

Many candidates and even IELTS tutors

misunderstand the words used here, and that is hardly surprising.

In fact, in a 2008 study,

which I will link to below, it was found the IELTS examiners found it

more difficult to mark coherence and cohesion than any other part of the exam.

And this seems to be partly related to language used. As such,

I want to show you the descriptors and explain exactly what they mean so

that you fully understand what is required of you.

So when we look at band 5 for IELTS

writing task 2, we can see it talks about the essay having

some organization, but perhaps it lacks progression.

It talks about inadequate, inaccurate or overused cohesive devices,

as well as repetition and poor paragraphing.

If we skip ahead to band 7, there's now logical organization,

clear progression, mostly good use of cohesive devices and good paragraphing.

When we go above band seven, there is nothing really specific.

It just talks about the same things being

done in a better or more natural way with few, if any, problems.

If we look at the band descriptors

for task 1, which is to say a letter or report, the criteria given is basically

the same, except there's no specific mention of paragraphing.

Thus, we can conclude that there are five important

factors in getting a good score for coherence and cohesion.

They are organization, progression,

cohesive devices, referencing, and, for task 2, there's paragraphing.

So let's look at each of these in turn so

that we can understand how to improve our essays.

First of all, let's look at organization.

This means how your ideas are arranged within the essay.

As I mentioned earlier, essay that gets band 5 for coherence

and cohesion will have quite limited or ineffective organization.

There may be just a very basic structure

imposed upon the ideas at this level. At band 4 and below,

it will be extremely random and quite difficult to understand.

To score band 6 means having your ideas

presented in a way that the reader could somewhat understand,

and beyond that, they will be more neatly divided.

Let's say you're asked to discuss both views for a certain question.

Well, organizing your essay would first

require putting those ideas into paragraphs.

Most logically, you would have one paragraph with one

perspective and another with the opposite perspective.

You might be wondering why organization

and paragraphing are listed as two different criteria here.

Well, that's because, by paragraphing,

we mean the intricate and difficult aspects of building paragraphs rather than

just grouping ideas loosely according to their topic.

It is also why there is no real mention of paragraphing for task 1.

Even though you are expected to use

paragraphs in the letter or report, the paragraphs are seldom structured

with the same degree of complexity as in a task 2 essay.

Last week I talked about grouping data

for task 1 reports, and I said that you can often split

a chart or table or diagram into two parts and devote one paragraph to each.

Likewise, for a letter, you would give one short paragraph for each main point.

These are both examples of organization.

Progression is a tricky topic, or at least it seems that way at first.

As we saw earlier, band 5 essays typically lack progression, while band 7 ones

have clear progression and even a band 6 essay will have overall progression.

But what does this mean? Well, I'm sure you know,

the word progress, which is usually defined as moving forward

or developing. An essay, letter or report should feature progress by guiding

the reader from the logical beginning to a logical ending.

For essays, we start with an introduction.

This will set the topic and tell the reader what comes next.

Then there's the middle of the essay which will logically discuss ideas or

provide an argument before this is all neatly summarized in a conclusion.

A report is a bit simpler

with an introduction that gives an overview followed by the

relevant details, whilst a letter tends to be a bit more complicated,

yet at the same time rather intuitive.

It starts with a greeting,

states the purpose, gives the information, offers some sort of closing statement,

and then signs off. Problems with progression tend to come

in the introduction, where people make mistakes, like having a first sentence

that fails to set up the topic in an easily understandable way.

Or maybe it lacks a thesis statement or opinion if one is required.

Similarly, body paragraphs may fail to demonstrate progression if each

sentence does not logically build upon the previous one.

Cohesive devices... Right! Now,

here's a topic that I love to talk about. That may sound weird, right?

Well, it's an interesting one because there's so much bad advice on the Internet

nowadays. In the band descriptors for both task 1 and task 2 for

band 7, it says you must use a range of cohesive devices.

And that's the source of all this trouble.

Because of this, some unqualified teachers

tell their students that they must use lots of cohesive devices.

Likewise, there are some AI-powered

marking programs that claim to be able to assess your writing.

And these are always preprogrammed

to accept a certain number of cohesive devices as a sign of a band

6, 7, or 8.

If you put the word "however"

at the start of each sentence, they just give you a band 9.

But of course, this is not how language works.

The most important thing about cohesive

devices, first of all, is that you use them correctly.

As for the number of them,

well, I would invite you to go and read

some articles by professional writers. In formal or semi formal writing,

how many cohesive devices do you see?

Not that many and certainly not as many as the the average IELTS essay.

In fact, I encounter at least one essay

each week that has a cohesive device at the beginning of each sentence.

This is just too much.

It sounds artificial,

and instead of giving greater coherence

and cohesion, it actually makes the essay weak and disjointed.

This would most likely cap your score in this section for just a band 5 as it

clearly falls into the category of over use.

Instead, a good essay will not need many cohesive devices.

It will logically guide the reader by presenting the relevant information

through the aforementioned organization and progression.

Instead, you should just use a few

cohesive devices when they are necessary or to stress a point.

Good writers often use them to introduce an example or to highlight contrast.

Note that cohesive devices are typically quite formal,

and so if you're doing the general test and you must write a letter to a friend,

then you really don't want to include words like however

and meanwhile. It would sound kind of inappropriate.

You can swap these out for less formal words.

Similarly, there are some informal

cohesive devices used only in spoken English like last but not least,

which should definitely be avoided in an IELTS task 2 essays.

I should also mention here that we almost never modify cohesive devices and that you

should aim to use them with total accuracy. Two common problems that I see in people's

essays are mixing together two different cohesive devices into a new one

and misusing cohesive devices by misunderstanding their meanings.

I've written an article about that which I'll link to down below.

When I mark IELTS essays, one of the most common pieces of feedback

that I give to candidates is to reference more often and more clearly,

but what do I mean by referencing? In the context of the IELTS exam,

referencing means using one word to refer back to a different word or phrase.

Most commonly, this means replacing a noun

with a pronoun such as in these examples here.

The main benefit of this is avoiding repetition, which is something that native

speakers hate. In other cultures and languages,

it is perfectly fine to say the same word

dozens of times. In English, though, it sounds strange and oddly unpleasant.

That's why we use words like pronouns

and synonyms to avoid saying the same thing again and again and again.

Sometimes this means replacing one word with another word,

but other times it might mean replacing a much longer phrase or group of phrases.

Sometimes you have several ideas within a sentence that you need to refer back to,

and so you need to make it clear to the reader which of those you're pointing to.

The difference between it this and that becomes quite important.

Perhaps most of all, though,

you need to think about whether something is plural or singular.

In other words, should you say this or

these, that or those? Referencing is something that you need

to master, regardless of whether you do the academic or general test and is

equally applicable in task 1 and task 2. Next time you read an article in English,

pay attention to how the writer mentions previous ideas and avoids repetition.

It might help you to pick up on some subtle methods you didn't know.

You probably knew already that an essay,

letter, or report needs paragraphs. For an IELTS task 2 essay,

we usually have an introduction, two body paragraphs, and a conclusion. For task 1,

it can be a bit more fluid, but you still need to group your ideas together.

When it comes to the art of paragraphing,

we need to keep in mind this one important rule:

one paragraph equals one idea.

It's not the only rule, but it is the most important one.

Your introduction has one idea,

which is to introduce the topic and tell the reader what to expect.

The conclusion serves the purpose of summarizing.

But what about the body paragraphs?

Well, a good IELTS essay will have paragraphs that are clear and obvious.

If you've been asked to look a problem and solution, you will most likely discuss

the problem in one paragraph and the solution in another.

When discussing both sides of an argument, you will usually have one described in one

paragraph and the other side described in another paragraph.

It's not particularly difficult to do.

The harder part of paragraph is what I call the internal paragraph structure.

This means how the various sentences

in each paragraph work together to achieve unity.

That is, to give the paragraph its singular meaning.

We normally start with a topic sentence,

then have one or two sentences that explain the idea further.

Depending on the content,

we might then have an example,

some details or a hypothetical situation or a suggestion. It depends on the essay.

Sometimes we even have a concluding or transitional sentence at the end.

It's actually a huge topic to cover and I go into it in detail

in this video here. You can open that in the new tab and watch

it after this video if you want a deeper dive.

The key thing, though,

is that each paragraph should have one idea, and every sentence within

that paragraph should to some extent support that main idea.

Before we review and finish this video,

I'd like to add something that is not mentioned in the band descriptors.

This is the fact that sometimes coherence

and cohesion can be affected by your other English skills.

Think about it.

Even if you took all my advice in this video, studied the band descriptors,

and learned the most amazing structures, you might find it hard to get a band 8

or 9 for coherence and cohesion if your grammar or vocabulary was kind of poor.

That's because big problems with language

can reduce the clarity of your sentences and paragraphs.

A few misused or misplaced words can mean that your sentences are very difficult or

even impossible to understand. In the previously mentioned study,

this is one of the criticisms made.

Every single examiner expressed some doubt

over the marking of coherence and cohesion because they were unsure whether

to categorize the problem as part of this or another

iELTS marking criteria. In her excellent book,

An Ex Examiners Guide to Band Descriptors, Shelly Cornick explains that big mistakes

in language will make your essay impossible to understand,

which would mean you could get just a maximum of 6. She points out that

the obsession most students have with so-called advanced vocabulary ensures

they will get a poor score for coherence and cohesion.

I mention this because it is important not to look at

IELTS as a series of tasks

that you must complete in order to get a high score.

Rather, it is an effective system for judging English ability.

There is therefore some overlap between the different marking criteria.

It is good to know all about coherence and cohesion, but without leveling up all

of your skills, it alone would not be enough to save you from a poor score.

When it comes to coherence and cohesion,

many people say "write four paragraphs and use lots of cohesive devices,"

but as we've seen, that is not a good enough approach.

Coherence and cohesion is much more complicated than that.

It requires a good grasp of both language

and logic in order to get better at this part of the exam.

I would recommend doing several things.

First of all, I highly recommend that you read lots of different articles and essays

in English. As long as they're not too informal,

they could help you to see how native

speakers organize ideas, show progression and substitute words to avoid repetition.

You should also look into cohesive devices, which are sometimes known as

transition words, linkers, signposting language and various other terms.

Just remember that you shouldn't use them

for every sentence and that you must know their precise meaning and spelling.

Most importantly, though,

whether you are writing a practice essay or a real one, please spend some time

to plan out your essay before you start writing.

Most of what I've mentioned in

this video could be more easily achieved by following a simple plan.

Whilst this may seem like a waste of time to some people, it will help you to do

at least three of those five important things we discussed:

organize your ideas, show progression throughout and paragraph logically.

Once you can do that, the cohesive devices will be easier

to apply and then you just have to work on your referencing skills.

With all of that down, you'll be on track to a great IELTS writing score.