Malcolm Butler’s current
research focuses on how to influence teachers to
use science in the classroom. He is also studying
how cultural issues such as race, gender and ethnicity
affect the learning and teaching of science. (Photo
by Peter Frey)
Education prof focuses on helping teachers connect science,
students
Growing up in
south Louisiana as the youngest of 10 children,
Malcolm Butler was encouraged not only by his parents
but also by his older brothers and sisters to take
education seriously.
“School became a part of who I was—it was a place
I needed to be,” says Butler, who was one of three
first-generation college graduates in his family.
In school, Butler found that he liked science and
became intrigued by looking at logical ways to solve
problems. The opportunity for a physics scholarship
in college encouraged him to pursue science, first
as an undergraduate and then as a graduate student.
During his graduate work, Butler decided to focus
more on science education.
“I was fortunate enough to get involved in an after-school
program for African-American children and I became
excited about working with children and seeing them
get excited about science in a way that made sense
to them,” he says.
FACTS
MALCOLM BUTLER
Assistant Professor of
Science Education Ph.D.: University of Florida,
1995 M.Ed.: University of Florida,
1991 B.S.: Southern University,
1989 At UGA: 3-1/2 years
After toying with the idea of working in education,
Butler decided to combine his love for science with
helping educate students.
“Whether students are going to be the next Einstein
or a street magician, there is some level of science
that is important in all of these children’s lives,”
he says. “I want to see how to make the science
connect with the students.”
Butler’s current research interests feed into how
to influence teachers to use science in the classroom.
One project Butler is currently working on is called
“Writing to Learn,” which focuses on what teachers
are doing in writing and how that can be used to
support what is happening in science.
Another research area for Butler centers on issues
of culture. Whether it is race, ethnicity or gender,
he is looking at how “difference” issues affect
science teaching and learning.
Each summer, Butler also teaches a course on the
Georgia coast for teachers and teacher educators.
The class investigates marine science issues in
Brunswick, Sapelo and several other barrier islands.
As an assistant professor of education at Texas
A&M–Corpus Christi, Butler was named one of
the “Top 40 Under 40” by the Corpus Christi Caller-Times
in 1998. That same year he also received the Outstanding
Young Men of America award and the Corpus Christi
District United Methodist Church Discipleship Award.
Yet Butler still considers his highest accomplishment
to be achieving his Ph.D.
“Look at my family background and history and it
wouldn’t be expected that I would earn that degree,”
he says. “Not only is receiving a Ph.D. my academic
high, but it is also a personal high. I recognize
that if it had not been for my family when I was
growing up, along with my wife and my son, I would
not have been able to achieve what I have.”
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