Cohesion

Cohesion is all about the connections between ideas, sentences, and paragraphs that help the reader navigate the text smoothly. These connections are created through grammatical and lexical means, allowing the writing to flow logically.

Grammatical Cohesion:

This is achieved through the use of pronouns, determiners, conjunctions, and transition signals. These elements help the reader see how ideas relate to each other.

  • Pronouns: Used to refer to previously mentioned data.

Example: ” The number of graduates increased by 20%. This growth continued steadily over the next decade.” (“This” refers to the increase in the number of graduates.)

  • Conjunctions: Words like and, but, so, because join clauses or sentences.

Example: ” The population grew significantly, but the employment rate remained stagnant.”

  • Reference Words: Words such as this, that, these, those can point to something mentioned earlier.

Example: “The percentage of elderly people rose dramatically. This trend suggests an aging population.”

 Lexical Cohesion:

Lexical cohesion involves using related words, synonyms, or collocations to connect ideas without repeating the same word.

  • Synonyms/Paraphrasing: Using different words to describe the same concept.

Example: “The sales of smartphones increased in 2010. This rise in mobile phone sales continued throughout the year.” (Synonyms: smartphones, mobile phones)

  • Collocations: Groups of words that frequently go together.

Example: “The chart illustrates the gross domestic product (GDP) of several countries.” (“Gross domestic product” is a collocation.)

Coherence

Coherence ensures that your writing flows logically from one idea to the next. In Academic Task 1, each paragraph should have a clear focus, and the overall structure should make it easy for the reader to follow the description or explanation.

  • Logical Structure: Your response should be divided into clear sections: introduction, overview, and body paragraphs. There is NO Conclusion for IELTS Academic Writing Task 1.

Example:

  • Introduction: Paraphrase the task prompt.
  • Overview: Highlight the most significant trends or features.
  • Body Paragraph: Provide detailed explanations with data to support the trends mentioned.
  • No Conclusion

 

  • Paragraph Unity: Each paragraph should deal with one aspect of the data and develop it logically.

Example: “In the first decade, the population of the city increased by 25%. However, the birth rate showed a declining trend after 2010.”

 

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