GuruEAP

Academic English not only for Indonesians

Reconstructing public transport

Transportation, and the future of transportation, are common topics in the IELTS Speaking test. Reconstruct the text below to reveal an extract from an essay by Marcus Enoch in which he presents four visions for the future of public transport. (more…)

coherence, coherence and cohesion, cohesion, IELTS, jumbled sentences, reading, speaking

Windows to the soul

Another post highlighting and analysing cohesive devices in academic writing, this time a summary of research looking into the facial expressions of animals. (more…)

coherence, coherence and cohesion, cohesion, cohesive devices, IELTS, referencing, substitution, vocabulary, writing

Cohesion in the news

In this post we look at some cohesive devices used in a recent news report covering the unrest in Hong Kong. (more…)

coherence, coherence and cohesion, cohesion, cohesive devices, IELTS, interactive, writing

Why these and not those?

These days a lot of people like to use smartphones and tablets. Those are popular because they can connect to the Internet.

OK so our writer is using those as a substitute for smartphones and tablets. However, it would have been better to use these: (more…)

avoiding repetition, coherence, cohesion, IELTS, itu, referencing, speaking, substitution, writing

Referring to sources using substitution

It has been argued that expenditure needed for applying a circular economy tends to be high (Kirchher et al., 2017). However, their claim is easy to counter given the many economic benefits offered by a circular economy.

(more…)

coherence, cohesion, EAP, it, referencing, substitution, theme and rheme, this and these

Cementing ideas with ‘it’ and ‘this’

A good way to avoid repetition in writing, and at the same time to cement (= stick) sentences together so that ideas flow smoothly, is to use what’s called referencing and substitution (many examples of referencing and substitution in previous posts). (more…)

coherence, cohesion, cohesive, IELTS, pronouns, referencing, speaking, substitution, theme and rheme, writing

In(the) first place

In the first place is over-grazing, which caused 35% of land degradation.

Not a terrible error – we know what you mean! But still, it’s important to understand the distinction between ‘in first place’ and ‘in the first place’.
In IELTS Task 1 writing we often find ourselves ranking items as follows: (more…)

coherence, IELTS, speaking, Task 1, Task 2, vocabulary, writing

Paying (for) basic needs

In Australia I will need a lot of money to pay my basic needs.

This is obviously a translation problem. (more…)

bayar, coherence, IELTS, Indo English, speaking, writing

Stating subjects in IELTS Task 1

Americans rose steadily, while Indonesians fell dramatically.

Well, maybe. Something like this? (more…)

coherence, EAP, GTC, IELTS, Task 1, writing

Nothing ‘needs’ high cost

Studying abroad needs high cost!

This one does not translate directly from Indonesian. In fact the meaning changes dramatically!
In English if you say something ‘needs high cost‘ then you are saying: (more…)

biaya, biaya tinggi, coherence, collocation, EAP, economics, IELTS, speaking, vocabulary, writing