Fluency and Coherence

IELTS Speaking:
Fluency & Coherence

Multiple Choice

What do you think "Fluency and Coherence" means in IELTS Speaking?

• A. Speaking English quickly and clearly

• B. Answering every question perfectly

• C. Speaking with long, logical and well-linked ideas

• D. Speaking without any mistakes

Open Ended

What is Fluency?

Fluency means...

• Speak continuously without too much hesitation.

• Keep a natural rhythm and pace.

• Avoid repeating or correcting yourself too often.

Open Ended

Examples of good coherence...

Coherence means...

• Organizing your ideas logically.

• Using clear linkers and phrases.

• Helping the listener follow your ideas.

Multiple Choice

You need to speak very fast to get a high fluency score.

• TRUE

• FALSE

Examples of linking devices

Common discourse markers:

• Well, you know, actually, I suppose, in fact, to be honest...

Connectors for coherence:

• First of all, Another thing is that, On top of that, In addition to this...

Multiple Choice

Choose the option that would receive the highest score for Fluency and Coherence in the IELTS Speaking test.

• “Well, I go to the cinema probably once a month or so, mostly when my friends ask me to join. I enjoy it, but I don’t always have time, so sometimes I skip it even when there's a movie I want to see.”

• “Yeah, I enjoy going to the cinema. I usually go about once a month if there’s something interesting showing. But I also enjoy watching films at home, so I don’t go out as much as I used to.”

• “Well, I suppose I usually go to the cinema maybe once a month or so, especially if there’s a good movie playing. I mean, it’s kind of a nice change from staying at home, and I like the experience overall.”

• “Well, I suppose I usually go to the cinema maybe once a month or so, especially if there’s a good movie playing. I guess it’s a nice way to unwind after a stressful week, and I really enjoy the whole atmosphere — the big screen, the sound system, and even the popcorn.”

Practice

Task: Answer this question using at least 3 linking phrases:
"What do you like about your hometown?"

Use phrases like:

• Well, to be honest...

• The first thing I’d say is that...

• On top of that...

Peer feedback

• Did they use at least 3 linking phrases?

• Was their answer organized (beginning–middle–end)?

• Did they speak smoothly without too much hesitation?

Multiple Choice

Which of the following would reduce your coherence score?

• Using expressions like “well, I suppose” or “actually” at the beginning of most of your answers to create a natural flow.

• Including a wide range of personal opinions in your response, even if they slightly go off-topic from the original question.

• Repeating your main point in different ways to make sure the examiner understands what you want to say.

• Structuring your answers with clear transitions between ideas, even if your vocabulary is relatively simple.

Practice strucuture

Use this template to expand your answer:

Lead-in: Well to be honest, I’d say...
Point 1: The first thing I’d mention is that...
Point 2: On top of that, I’d also say...
Point 3: And finally, it’s worth mentioning that...