In the Malaysian education system, attention is highly paid on reading words. Visual images are often treated as "decoration", or are dismissed altogether (Kress & Leeuwen, 1996). Many local researchers (Saedah 1990, Bahiyah et. al. 2008 have only analysed written texts to see how social practices deemed negative such as gender biasness are reflected in the words (lexical items) and linguistic structures. Currently, no systematic research has been undertaken in Malaysia to analyse visual images in English language school textbooks to study how visual images can reflect gender biasness. This research project addresses gender biasness found in visual images in school textbooks, i.e., the treatment of one gender over the other especially of women and girls. The project adopts three widely used approaches for analyzing visual images; content, socio semiotic and ethno-methodology analyses. This paper will however highlight its preliminary analysis focusing on image analysis based on participation, gender and representational meanings. Its aim is to identify the types of images and the representation of gender biasness and stereotyping found in the textbook. The preliminary findings should expose the sexism and gender biasness in the visual images of a sampled textbook; i.e. an English school textbook that is abound with visual images that sometimes, more so than written texts, can articulate more forcefully social and cultural meanings.

The main objective of this study is to examine and reveal images of gender-stereotyped occupations from primary school English textbooks and uncover gendered attributes from these images. Images in the textbooks

Due to the revolution of technology in communication, a unique form of communication has emerged involving the use of new word forms, structures and style of expression. Therefore, this study examined the linguistic features used in a discussion forum among the e-distance learning students in Universiti Teknologi MARA Malaysia. The data of this study were collected from messages posted by the students to their friends and lecturers. The online forums are platform for the students in this program to communicate with their fellow classmates, lecturers and other e-distance learning students. The study indicates students use linguistic features such as rebus writing, internet specific acronyms, reduplication of letters when communicating with their friends. This study also hopes to enrich the knowledge on the study of computer-mediated communication and to motivate other researchers to conduct further studies in this area.Index Terms-About four key words or phrases in alphabetical order, separated by commas.

Modern society is currently experiencing strong influences in the 21st-century that are shaping culture, structure and various institutional features. Although modern rational value systems supersede traditional ones, some traditional and modern values still coexist. The blurring of the modern-traditional values dichotomy is the result, even now in the Malaysian corporate world, shaping corporate and economic behaviour and practices. The social inclusion and exclusion of women in board directorship are influenced by traditional values as much as modern values, hence challenging male board dominance. Based on a qualitative research methodology, this paper discusses some empirical findings. Semi-structured interviews with 17 male and female directors from public-listed (PLCs) and private companies in Malaysia found the coexistence of traditional and modern values and related aspects that have enabled women to get appointed, empowered, and sustain their appointment on the PLCs boards. Modern values like rationality, efficiency, meritocracy, professionalism, and individuality coexist with traditional personalism, trust, loyalty and patriarchy (notably male status quo dominance). These values are portrayed through hard and soft skills, technical and practical business knowledge, some personality traits and professional business and work experiences. This social inclusion and exclusion aspects will drive the rise, withdrawal, exit or even avoidance of women as company directors of PLCs in Malaysia. This blurring dichotomy argument may hold for as long as the society subscribes to the coexistence of modern and traditional values systems in modern corporate Malaysia.

Social media have gained astounding worldwide growth and popularity and have become prominent in the