Equity, context, and didactic transformation: Rethinking innovation in STEM education

In recent decades, STEM education has been influenced by global reform movements emphasizing innovation, digitalization, and student-centered pedagogies. These developments are often linked to broader policy agendas aimed at improving educational outcomes and preparing learners for rapidly changing societies. However, research has shown that the implementation of such reforms is uneven, with limited alignment between policy intentions and classroom practices. Scholars have increasingly highlighted the importance of contextual and institutional factors, including curriculum structures, assessment systems, teacher preparation, and resource availability in shaping how innovation is enacted. At the same time, growing attention has been paid to issues of equity, particularly in relation to access, participation, and outcomes in STEM learning. Despite these advances, there remains a need for more integrated and critical analyses examining how innovation, context, and equity intersect in STEM education.

The goal of this Research Topic is to critically question the concept of innovation in STEM education by examining how it is defined, implemented, and experienced across diverse educational contexts. While innovation is often positioned as a solution to persistent challenges in teaching and learning, there is limited understanding of the conditions under which it leads to meaningful transformation. This collection seeks to move beyond celebratory or instrumental accounts of innovation to explore its complexities, contradictions, and limitations. Specifically, the Research Topic aims to (1) examine how contextual and institutional conditions shape innovation, (2) analyze its implications for equity, participation, and access in STEM education, and (3) identify the mechanisms through which innovation contributes or fails to contribute to changes in teaching practices and student learning. By bringing together interdisciplinary and cross-contextual perspectives, the collection seeks to generate theoretically informed and empirically grounded insights that can inform more equitable and context-sensitive approaches to educational change.

This topic welcomes contributions that critically examine innovation in STEM education across school and teacher education contexts. We invite empirical (qualitative, quantitative, or mixed methods), theoretical, and methodological papers that engage with one or more of the following themes:

• Conceptualizations of innovation in STEM education

• Changes and continuities in teaching and learning practices

• Teacher education and professional development for innovation

• Policy–practice relationships and institutional influences

• Equity, inclusion, and participation in STEM learning

• Contextual and comparative studies across educational systems

• Methodological and theoretical approaches to studying educational change

We are particularly interested in contributions that move beyond tool-focused or purely technical perspectives and instead situate innovation within broader pedagogical, institutional, and socio-cultural processes. Submissions should offer clear educational relevance and contribute to advancing critical and context-sensitive understandings of STEM education.