Motive Questions

• Do you find it difficult to stay on one

topic when writing a composition?
• Are the texts you write filled with
disorganized ideas?
• Would you like to know how to improve
your reader’s experience when trying to
understand your essays?
 Properties of a Well-
Written Text:
Coherence and Cohesion
Reading and Writing Skills
2nd Semester | SY 2016-2017

Miss Hazel Angelyn E. Tesoro

Teacher III
Coherence and Cohesion
• Coherence and cohesion make your text
easier for your readers to follow and
understand.
• Both should be present in your text
because having one without the other
will still create confusion for readers.
 Cohesion vs. Coherence
• Cohesion is the • Coherence is the
connection of relationship of
ideas to the ideas between
central concept of sentences.
a text.
Key Points
cohesion
without
coherence coherence is difficult to
without follow
cohesion has no definite
point

with both
cohesion and is logically
coherence sequenced &
stays on topic
Cohesion
without
cohesion
without
coherence is difficult to
follow

Coherence
 • central concept
• holds all the
“Glue”
different ideas
together

Cohesion No • ideas in sentences

without apparent are not connected
logic to each other
Coherence

Moving
on • weak paragraph
without
proper development
transition
Sample Text using
Cohesion without Coherence
Cubism is an avant-garde art movement
that started in the early 20th century in
Europe. A famous Filipino cubist painter is
Vicente Manansala. He is a National Artist
of the Philippines in Visual Arts. Did you
know that visual arts have different forms
including architecture, video, and textile?
Coherence
without coherence
without
cohesion has no definite
point

Cohesion
 • no central
concept
No “Glue” • nothing holding
all the different
ideas together

Coherence
Logically
without sequenced
• easy to follow

Cohesion

Main point • weak paragraph

is unclear development
Sample Text using
Coherence without Cohesion
My favorite painting is “The Weeping Woman”
by Pablo Picasso, which is an intriguing
painting that symbolizes suffering. As a result,
I love bright primary colors, so I wear a lot of
shocking yellows, blues, and reds. Also, as an
outgoing person, I enjoy performing for large
crowds. In the end, people should not judge an
artist’s talent based on one standard.
 with both
cohesion and is logically
coherence sequenced &
stays on topic

Cohesion and
Coherence
 “Glue”

Easy to
understand Logical
Coherence
and
Cohesion

Clear
Easy to
main
follow
point
Sample Text using
Cohesion and Coherence
International Women’s Day is celebrated on the
8th of March of every year. It began as a
Socialist political event in several Western
countries. Then, other countries also started
celebrating the holiday just as a way to express
their love for women. Currently, the United
Nations observes the holiday as a way to bring
to light women’s issues around the world.
Got questions?

Writing Task: Which is Which
Choose the correct word to make each
sentence coherent.
1.Universities are usually happy to welcome a
percentage of (senior, mature) students.
2.He’s had an unusual career (road, path)
from market trader to company owner.
3.Most people aim for the best qualifications
they can get in their chosen (field,
territory).
4.For many people, education is about
(heightening, broadening) their knowledge,
not getting a better job.
5. (Further, Distance) learning means you
don’t need to be physically present at a
college.
6.Just make sure your degree is officially
(recognized, known) by the government.
7.Open University students’ essays are
usually (assessed, criticized) by an online
tutor.
8.In recent years, universities have started
charging (scholarship, tuition) fees.
Writing Task: Word Order
Arrange the following words in the
appropriate order to form a well-
structured sentence.
 9

a baby apple
her the mother
gave red
 10

when a studying not

older should be
you’re problem
 11

be after can to
gap a problematic
back studying long
going
 12

be college stressful
can going
university to or
 13

many of amount
tuition to pesos now
thousands fees
Writing Task: Cloze Test
Complete the ideas being implied below
by filling in the appropriate words on the
blanks provided.
 Once upon a time a farmer had three sons. The farmer was rich and had many fields, but his
sons were lazy.
When the farmer was dying, he called his three sons to him. ‘I have left you (14)__________
which will make you (15)__________,’ he told them. ‘But (16)__________ must dig in all
(17)__________ fields to find the (18)__________ where the treasure is (19)__________.’
After the old man (20)__________, his three lazy sons (21)__________ out into the fields
(22)__________ began to dig. ‘I'll (23)__________ the first to find (24)__________ place where
the treasure (25)__________ buried,’ cried the eldest (26)__________. ‘That’s the field where
(27)__________ father put the treasure,’ (28)__________ another son. The three
(29)__________ dug all the fields (30)__________ several years, but they (31)__________ no
treasure. However, many (32)__________ grew in the fields (33)__________ the sons had dug
(34)__________ vegetables that made them very (35)__________.
Questions for Understanding
• How can you stay on one topic when
writing a composition?
• Cite tips on how can you steer clear
from disorganized ideas.
• If you were to give an advice to a
struggling writer on improving reader’s
experience, what advice would you give?
Quiz
Quiz
Identify what is being asked for.
 1
The relationship of ideas between
sentences
Clue: C
 2
The connection of ideas to the central
concept of a text
Clue: C
 3
It is the term used to describe the central
concept or idea
Clue: G
 4
a kind of text that is logically sequenced
and stays on topic
 5
a kind of text that is difficult to follow