HOW TO CREATE

A CLEAR ESSAY

(COHERENCE & COHESION)

IELTS
WRITING
TASK 2

BY LOUISE BOLLANOS
Copyright

Copyright ©ieltsachieve2018 All Rights Reserved.

This ebook or any portion thereof, may not be reproduced or

used in any manner whatsoever without the express written

permission of the publisher.

www.ieltsachieve.com

ieltsachieveacademy@gmail.com

Disclaimer

The information in this ebook is provided to help you study for

the IELTS Test. This is for your personal use and information

purposes only. The material provided in this ebook has been

created by experienced IELTS teachers and ex-examiners.

IELTS is a registered trademark of University of Cambridge, the

British Council, and IDP Education Australia. This ebook and it's

owners are not connected, approved or endorsed by the

University of Cambridge ESOL, the British Council, and IDP

Education Australia.  

Page 1
Table of Contents

Page 3: Introduction

Page 4: Understand the question

Page 5: Think of specific ideas

Page 6: Give a clear opinion

Page 7: Essay Structure

Page 8: Vocabulary

Page 9: Bad example 

Page 10: Good example

Page 11: Question + answer 

Page 12: About the author

Page 2
Introduction

In this section, we will look at how you can make your writing

task 2 essay clear for the examiner.

Having a clear and easy to understand essay improves your

score in coherence and cohesion.

Creating a clear essay may sound like a simple thing to do,

but many students often try too hard and end up with an essay

that is confusing and difficult to follow.

This obviously lowers your score if the examiner cannot

understand what it is you are trying to say in your writing.

Page 3
1. Understand the question

Read the question and understand it, look at the keywords

and what it is asking you to do.

What are the main issues and the sub-issues?

Can you tell if it is an agree/disagree essay?

What type of essay is it?

These are all questions you should be able to answer from

understanding the question.

If you do not understand the question properly, you could

present irrelevant information in your essay, which can lead to

a confusing essay and lower marks.

Page 4
2. Think of specific ideas

When you are thinking of ideas for your essay, make sure they

are specific.

Don't write generally about the topic or try to stuff as many

ideas as possible into the main body paragraphs.

The main body paragraphs should each contain one main

idea. If you present more than this, the paragraphs will

become confusing for the examiner.

The paragraphs should follow a certain structure, to ensure

you gain marks for coherence and cohesion. If you have many

ideas, you will not have time to explain them all and support

them with examples.

By choosing one main specific idea, explaining it, giving

details and supporting with an example, this will make the

information clear and easy to understand.

Page 5
3. Give a clear opinion

If the essay question asks you to give your opinion, then

make sure you give it clearly in the writing.

There are many ways to introduce your opinion, including

using 'in my opinion, I believe that' or 'In my view'.

If you don't give a clear opinion or state your position on the

subject, then you can lose marks.

Page 6
4. Essay structure

By reviewing and practising the essay structures for the

various question types, you will be able to demonstrate to the

examiner that you can structure an IELTS writing task 2 essay

successfully.

The marking criteria - coherence and cohesion for a band

score 7 states 'logically organise information and ideas, there

is clear progression throughout, uses a range of cohesive

devices appropriately although there may be some

under/overuse, presents a clear central topic within each

paragraph', and for a band score 8 'sequences information

and ideas logically, manages all aspects of cohesion well,

uses paragraphing sufficiently and appropriately'.

If you can organise your essay into clear easy to follow

paragraphs, with cohesive devices and logical order, then

you will be on your way to gaining a high band score.

Page 7
5. Vocabulary

The vocabulary you use in your essay also has a huge impact

on how easy it is to read through and understand.

When students try too hard, putting in high-level words they

don't really know the meaning of and trying to fit in as many

complex structures as possible, this makes an essay very

difficult for the examiner to read and follow.

When you read your essay over after you have finished, does

it make sense to you?

Can you clearly understand each part?

It is very important that your essay clearly communicates

your message in relation to the question.

If you have many grammatical errors this can also make the

essay hard to understand.

Page 8
Bad Example

Here is an example of an essay that is not very clear due to

grammatical errors, structure and vocabulary (this essay is a

band score 5).

Can you list the errors?

How could you improve this essay?

Page 9
Good Example

Here is the re-written essay, can you see the difference?

Is it easier to understand?

This essay follows the following elements for a successful high

scoring essay (this essay is a band score 8) >

Answers the question

Uses paraphrasing and synonyms

Follows the cause/effect essay structure

Uses logical paragraphing

Includes relevant ideas

Includes specific examples

Uses cohesive devices

Uses complex sentences

Has a wide variety of vocabulary

No grammatical errors

Page 10
Question + Answer

Drug usage is very common in the present-day population as many adolescents are using

these legal and illegal products, beginning in their childhood years. Some social

academics think that adults are terrible role models because they are heavily influencing

the behaviour of the young people around them. This essay will discuss the principal

reason why this has occurred and analyze the main consequence of this worrying trend.

On the one hand, the primary cause of this issue is the stressful lives many of these young

people are living in today’s society. Some may have terrible home lives, with absent

parents, no stable accommodation or other traumatic events experienced on a daily basis.

For many youngsters, they experiment with illegal drugs and alcohol, in order to escape

from their present situations. These kinds of substances are readily available to children

and teens, as they are eager to try drugs, or are pressured into it by their peers or family

members. For example, an article from the New York Times in 2017 reported that in 50

state schools interviewed, over 90% of the students aged between 14-16 had experimented

with a class A drug.

On the other hand, common substance abuse in adolescents can lead to one main

consequence, which is health problems. Regularly using drugs, from prescription

medication to hard drugs can have both short term and long terms health effects,

including; heart disease, kidney or liver damage, abdominal pain and lead to a weaker

immune system. Certain drugs can also cause brain damage, sometimes causing severe

problems with the use of motor skills or nerves. For instance, a documentary filmed by the

BBC in 2017, showed the effects of serious drug dependencies amongst teenagers aged

between 16-19. One person interviewed had developed serious damage to the brain, as

well as facial nerves, through the overuse of MDMA. This had left the teen with permanent

facial twitching and psychosis.

In addition, teens should be taught about the serious and harmful effects of drug taking in

school. The students should learn about the damaging and lasting effects of taking

recreational drugs, even though they may see them as a way to unwind or escapism. The

health issues relating to drugs and alcohol should be explained with case studies given as

a deterrent to any young people who are thinking about experimenting. For example, as

part of the curriculum in Sixth Form Colleges in the UK, students are made to watch a

series of documentaries about the dangers of drugs and alcohol, in order to learn about

the risks. They listen to teenagers talk about their own bad experiences and the

consequences of this.

In conclusion, many teens are experimenting with common drugs from an early age,

leading to heavy consequences like health issues, as they grow older. To combat this issue,

more initiatives should be set forth through the school system, to create awareness of the

risks involved.

Page 11
Thank You!

To view free IELTS study materials, visit the bookshop or to join

the IELTS Achieve Academy please visit www.ieltsachieve.com

About the author - Louise Bollanos

Louise had been teaching in the UK for over 10 years in further

education. She worked in colleges for a number of years

before deciding to teach online.

Louise has experience teaching IELTS to nurses and doctors

from around the world, with many starting out at a 6.5 or lower

and passing with band scores of 7, 8 or above.

She writes IELTS study materials for schools internationally and

has completed extensive IELTS training.

Louise loves to meet new IELTS students and works hard with

them to improve their band scores. Louise is originally from the

UK and currently lives in Corfu, Greece with her husband and

dog.

Page 12