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This paper provides a conceptual critique of the various constructs often used to justify policies and/or research to promote equity, diversity and social justice in science education. As research expands in these areas, there is a need to support researchers in deepening their work toward transformative goals in science teaching and learning. First, this paper explores the ways in which researchers often argue why equity, diversity or social justice should be addressed. Next, the authors outline how researchers have argued that equity, diversity and social justice should be addressed, including approaches such as equal distribution, mandated policy and sociotransformative education. Examples of recent research are provided that bring into practice the lesser known of these, the sociotransformative approach, arguing that this approach provides the field of science education research with a more promising way to create sustainable change. This approach is centered on improving the lived experiences of historically marginalized youth and encourages researchers to focus on reporting research as narratives of engagement.