A Research on the Australian Educational Institute : An Analysis of the Representations of the Adult Migrant English Service in a Local Daily Newspaper, the Sydney Morning Herald

新聞記事内容分析

多文化主義

『シドニー・モーニング・ヘラルド』紙

オーストラリア・ニューサウスウェールズ州

Adult Migrant English Service

newspaper content analysis

Sydney Morning Herald

multiculturalism

New South Wales Australia

This paper analyses the representations of the Australian educational institute known as 'Adult Migrant English Service' (AMES, New South Wales, Australia) in a local daily newspaper (The Sydney Morning Herald) from January 1990 to November 2001, examining and categorizing written perspectives toward it. A detailed evaluation of all 56 articles reveals that the newspaper representations of AMES remain fixed and superficial. AMES is seen to be dictated by the socio-economic and political climates and also regarded to be a special benefit rather than a right from the government. For instance, learners at AMES are mostly described as people who are disorientated, not knowing how to live in Australia, and desperate for help. AMES is seen to be the perfect solution to these problems, and its learners are portrayed as being wholly appreciative of its service. There was almost no representation of learners as being self-independent by nature, or of them providing a positive contribution to this multicultural society. In conclusion, although multiculturalism has, in theory, been practiced over last 20 years, these representations of AMES in Sydney Morning Herald are not necessarily reflective of Australia's multicultural views.