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Cohesion and coherence in ielts11/22/2023 ![]() My students always have a lot of fun with this activity, and, more importantly, they learn how to go beyond transition words to connect the old information in a previous paragraph with new information in the following. At this point you could either ask them to take their essays home and improve on the transitions for homework, or have them tape their cut-up essay onto a sheet of paper and write some improved transitions. Step #6: With their partner’s feedback, give students some time to reflect on the organization of their papers and some time to rewrite transitions. Be sure to point out that if the only reason they knew the order was because the paragraphs began with “first” and “second,” they have some more work to do. (I always have an essay ready for those who forgot to bring it in so that everyone gets to practice.) Once students trade papers with their partner, they do the same thing as before, rearrange the paragraphs as they think it should go and then tell their partner why they thought that order was correct. They then trade papers with their partner. I usually assign drafts of an essay they are working on to be turned in on this day cut up between paragraphs. Next, it’s time for students to work on their own drafts. You could extend this activity by having them improve the transitions, or rewrite a few sentences to use a different cohesive device. After you go through some common cohesive devices, ask students to determine, with their partner, what kind of cohesive devices the writer used in the film review. I like that it goes beyond just a list of transition words. There are so many handouts to choose from online, but one handout I have used before was created by Bellevue College. ( Learn more about Flipped teaching in my previous blog post.) Since I don’t spend too much time on this, I usually cover this in class by providing a handout that highlights cohesive devices. If you use a flipped learning model, you may want to move this direct instruction outside the class. Step #4: Give a mini lesson on cohesive devices. Call on a few pairs to share their observations with the class. ![]() Step #3: Now that each pair knows the correct order, give them a couple of minutes to look at the last sentence and first sentence between each paragraph to make some observations of how the writer transitioned between paragraphs. Continue doing this throughout till everyone knows the correct order. Then have them re-evaluate (if needed) the order of the others and tell which one they think comes next and why. Step #2: Begin by telling them which paragraph goes first. Once each pair thinks they know the correct order, ask them to write it up on the board (e.g., B, D, C, E, F, A). When I use the film review linked to above, there usually is at least one or two pairs that get it right. Then have them work together to decide the correct order. Step #1: Separate students into pairs and give each pair one cut-up writing piece. You can also go with a more traditional essay, but I like using “real-world” writing samples when I can. My go-to for this activity is Roger Ebert’s film review of Ferris Bueller’s Day Off, mainly because I love any excuse to introduce students to a John Hughes movie! When I use this film review, we usually watch the trailer and briefly discuss the plot. Any writing piece with some successful transitions will work. Prepare ahead of time: Find a short writing piece, rearrange the paragraphs, mark each paragraph with a separate letter and then cut the writing piece up, separating each paragraph. This activity could also be used for advanced learners preparing for IELTS. In this blog post, I will take you through a “cut-up” activity I use with advanced English language learners (B2+). To encourage my students to improve the flow of their ideas between paragraphs, I have them first reflect on the cohesion of someone else’s writing piece before turning their attention to their own. This can result in choppy writing that lacks a logical flow of ideas. When English language learners begin writing essays, they often rely on simple transition words, such as “first,” “second,” and “finally” to transition between paragraphs. According to the public version of IELTS Writing Band Descriptors to achieve a 7 for coherence and cohesion, the test taker needs to logically organize information and ideas, have a clear progression throughout, use a range of cohesive devices appropriately although there may be some under-/over-use, and present a clear central topic within each paragraph. Coherence and cohesion is one of the four criteria assessed on the Writing section of IELTS.
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