Cohesion and coherence in std. 10 English second language compositions of Black pupils : an analysis

Abstract

Cohesion and coherence are two aspects of text that are very closely related. In this descriptive study an analysis is made of the cohesive devices used in the compositions of Standard Ten pupils according to the framework established by Halliday and Hasan (1976) and a holistic coherence rating is determined according to the Holistic Coherence Rating scale of Bamberg (1984). These two analyses are correlated in order to determine if there is a correlation between the cohesion and coherence of the compositions. In conclusion, some suggestions are made relating to the teaching of cohesion and coherence in writing.