(This is especially useful if you are aiming for a Band 8 for IELTS Writing Task 2). So here is an activity for you. This activity will test your ability to create a paragraph that is both coherent and cohesive. “…they contibute to global warming.” Activity
“…I would buy a new house for my parents.” If you saw the words “The government should close all coal-fired power stations…”, you would expect the next chunk of text to give you a reason: e.g. For example if you saw the words “If I won the lottery…” you might expect the next chunk of writing to be about the result of winning the lottery: e.g. In a good piece of writing, cohesive devices also help the reader predict what might be coming next. Cohesive devices are like ‘ engine oil‘: in an engine, the oil helps all the parts of the engine move smoothly in writing, cohesive devices help your writing to flow smoothly. Secondly, this flow of ideas should be helped by carefully selecting cohesive devices, such as connectives, relative pronouns and the “verb + ing” form. This makes it easy for your reader to understand your arguments. Usually this means moving from general statements to specific examples of what you mean. In order to get a band score of 8 or above for Coherence and Cohesion, you need to sequence your ideas and information logically.įirstly, your writing should flow from one idea to another idea, in a way that gradually unpacks your thinking.