STEM Education With a Focus on Equity and Justice: Traditional Approaches, Contemporary Approaches, and Proposed Future Approach

ABSTRACT The disproportionate impacts of societal challenges (e.g., climate change, air and water pollution) on minoritized groups expose systemic injustices and compels STEM educators to reframe the role of STEM education in society. In this article, we describe traditional approaches, contemporary approaches, and our proposed future approach in science and STEM education with a focus on equity and justice. First, we begin with conceptual framing for equity and justice. Second, for each era (traditional, contemporary, future), we describe the intersections among (a) what counts as science and STEM subjects; (b) what role phenomena, problems, and societal challenges play in science and STEM education; and (c) how students learn science and STEM subjects. Traditional approaches in science education focused on learning canonical knowledge of science. Contemporary approaches, based on A Framework for K‐12 Science Education and the Next Generation Science Standards, center equity by providing opportunities for all students to make sense of phenomena in science and design solutions to problems in engineering. Going beyond contemporary approaches and complementing other research programs that share a commitment to justice, we propose a potential future approach— justice‐centered STEM education —that addresses societal challenges by leveraging multiple STEM subjects while centering justice. Finally, we close by calling for the science and STEM education communities to address increasingly complex societal challenges by centering justice for minoritized groups.