Efforts to decolonise STEM education have expanded globally, yet reforms often prioritise equity, access, and representation rather than transforming underlying knowledge systems. This critical review examines whether current equity initiatives achieve epistemic decolonisation, identifies pedagogical and curricular innovations that challenge dominant knowledge hierarchies, and analyses structural barriers limiting progress. Drawing on literature published between 2010 and 2025 across Global North and South contexts, thematic analysis is guided by critical race, decolonial, and epistemic justice perspectives. The review proposes principles for aligning equity-focused reforms with deeper epistemic transformation to support more inclusive, pluralistic, and socially just STEM education systems worldwide today.

Prof. Kelum Gamage (BSc, PhD, PgCAP, CEng, PFHEA, FIET, FRSA, SMIEEE) is a Full Professor in the James Watt School of Engineering at the University of Glasgow and a winner of the University of Glasgow Teaching Excellence Individual Award (2020/21). He is the Learning & Teaching Enhancement lead of the College of Science and Engineering and the Co-Director of the Centre for Educational Development and Innovation. Prof. Gamage has authored over 200 peer-reviewed articles, where he is the lead editor of "The Wiley Handbook of Sustainability in Higher Education Learning and Teaching" (ISBN: 978-1-119-85283-4) and also the Editor-in-Chief for the STEM Education Section of the Education Sciences Journal (Publisher: MDPI, Switzerland, ISSN 2227-7102). He is a Principal Fellow of the Higher Education Academy (PFHEA), a Chartered Engineer (CEng) of the Engineering Council (UK), a Fellow of the Institution of Engineering and Technology (FIET), a Fellow of the Royal Society of Arts  (FRSA) and a Senior Member of the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (SMIEEE).