Framing the Contemporary Education Issue: Analysis of News Stories from Selected Malaysian Daily Newspapers

The policy of teaching and learning of Mathematics and Science subjects in English was decided in 2002 and implemented in the following year. After five years of using pupils second language in learning these two highly cognitional subjects, the policymaker attempted to reconsider the medium of examination for the 2008 Primary School Achievement Test. On 27 October 2007, the then Prime Minister made a surprise announcement that the test for these two subjects would continue to be set in dual languages, namely, English and the respective mother-tongues. The main objective of this framing study was to explore the frames dominantly portrayed by policymakers, movements, and other parties involved. A content analysis on daily newspapers of the four languages was conducted for a period of one month after the above-mentioned announcement was made. This research adopted the format of Semetko and Valkenburg (2000) in scrutinising framing from responsibility, conflict, morality, economic consequences, and human interest perspectives. The research findings met the objective of establishing the source frames. The policy frame is more responsible in nature, while the movement frame is more confrontational and the editorial frame tends to highlight the morality aspect of life. The reader frame is deemed to be somewhat close to the movement for its aggressiveness