PROPERTIES

OF A WELL-
WRITTEN
TEXT
Objectives:

● Evaluate a written text based

on its properties (organization,
coherence and cohesion,
language use and mechanics)
Cohesion relates to the micro level of
the text, i.e. the words and sentences
and how they join.

Example:
Jane loves cooking, dancing, and
to eat.
Coherence is concerned with the
macro level features of a text, such
as topic sentences, thesis
statement the summary in the
concluding paragraph (dealt with
in the essay structure section), and
other 'bigger’ features including
headings such as those used in
reports.
Others to Avoid:
1. JARGON is occupation-specific
language used by people in a given
profession, the “shorthand” that
people in the same profession use to
communicate with each other.
Example:
● negative - results of a test that indicate a
tested condition not present (medical)
● berries and cherries - the lights on top
of a police car
2. CLICHÉ – expressions, idea or
phrase which has been used so
much that is no longer interesting
or effective or no longer has
much meaning.

Example:
● Don’t judge a book by its cover
● Good things come to those who
wait
3. EVERYDAY ABBREVATIONS

Example:
● photos
● fridge
● phone
● info
4. SLANG - the informal language of
conversation, text messages, and
other casual social communication
among friends.
Example:
● dude - guy
● buck - dollar
● chill - relax
● hot - attractive
 5. NOT GENDER NEUTRAL
Policeman Police officer
Steward, Flight attendant
stewardess
Legislator,
Congressman congressional
representative

Freshman First-year student

Example:

The asymptomatic, COVID positive

patient was rushed to the hospital.
c. Use a comma to separate long
clauses joined by conjunctions
such as by, and, but, or, for, yet,
and so

Example:
Last week was my sister’s wedding, so I
prepared to go to the salon for my
haircut.
d. Use commas after introductory
clauses, phrases, or words that
come before the main clause.

Example:
While I was waiting for the rain to
subside, suddenly there was a bolt of
lightning split the sky.
Example:
▪ Being on time, I have received an
incentive from my boss. (participial phrase)

▪ To travel outside the region, you need to

secure necessary documents. (infinitive
phrase)

▪ Ms. Rodriguez, who wrote many English

books, was one of my favorite teachers.
(appositive phrase)
Example: I am excited to go home;
moreover, I wanted to stay there for
good.
 3. Colon
a. Use a colon for separating chapter from
verse in Bible reference, separating volume from
page in bibliography reference, writing a
salutatory greeting in professional writing and
giving the time.

Example:
▪ My favorite verse is Psalm 23:1
▪ Majority of the references that I cited were
taken from the Academic Journal 11:23
(volume 11, page 23)
b. Use a colon to introduce a
formal list

Example:
▪ Three things I have accomplished
today: answered modules,
e-mailed documents, and
researched enrichment activities.
 Example: Oh God, I thank You.

b. Capitalize professional titles when used

before a personal name

Example: General Santiago was arrested for

alleged graft.
 c. Capitalize academic titles and their
abbreviations when they follow a
personal name.

Example: Teresa D. Buray, PhD

d. Capitalize brand names

Example:
My dream car is Toyota Fortuner.
 e. Capitalize the days of the
week, months of the year, and
holidays

Examples:

▪ The opening of classes is in August.

▪ I always prepare gifts for Christmas.
a. Only abbreviate well-known terms
e.g., TV for television

b. Abbreviations that use capital letters are

called initialisms
e.g., M.D PhD EdD

c. In formal writing, it is recommended not to

abbreviate the dates, only if needed,
especially when used in tables or charts.
e.g., Mon. Oct. 5 Dec. 25
 THANK YOU
FOR
PARTICIPATIN
G!