Coherence of essay through the use of lexical and grammatical devices: An analysis

2025 IJRSE – Volume 14 Issue 10

Available Online:  3 June 2025

Author/s:

Aribatado, Reynamer*
Sorsogon State University Graduate School, Philippines (reynamer.aribatado@deped.gov.ph)

Jamora, Michael John
Sorsogon State University Graduate School, Philippines (jamora.michaeljohn@sorsu.edu.ph)

Abstract:

This study examined the lexical and grammatical cohesion in the essay compositions of Grade 10 students at Louella Gotladera Alcoba National High School during the 2024-2025 academic year. Using Dadufalza’s (1992) framework, the research analyzed 60 essays (30 persuasive and 30 expository) to assess paragraph development and cohesive devices. Findings revealed that expository essays frequently employed process explanations (15%) and description (10%), while persuasive essays relied heavily on cause-effect analysis (28%) and listing (16%). However, 60% of expository and 13% of persuasive paragraphs lacked coherent structure. Lexical cohesion was dominated by repetition (39-42%), with limited use of synonymy (18%) and hyponymy (14%). Grammatical cohesion primarily involved reference (55-59%) and conjunctions (29-36%), ellipsis appeared less frequently (9-12%), while substitution was absent. These results highlight students’ overreliance on basic cohesive strategies and underdeveloped rhetorical flexibility. To address these gaps, the study proposes The Art of Connection: A Handbook for Achieving Cohesion and Coherence in Writing, a practical handbook designed to enhance writing coherence through targeted exercises on lexical variation and grammatical cohesion. The findings underscore the need for explicit instruction in advanced writing techniques to improve students’ essay composition skills in multilingual settings.

Keywords: coherence, cohesion, grammatical cohesion, lexical cohesion, paragraph development

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DOI: https://doi.org/10.5861/ijrse.2025.25133

Cite this article:
Aribatado, R., & Jamora, M. J. (2025). Coherence of essay through the use of lexical and grammatical devices: An analysis. International Journal of Research Studies in Education, 14(10), 177-195.  https://doi.org/10.5861/ijrse.2025.25133

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