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Publications on diversity in engineering in the UK have risen by more than tenfold in the last decade, yet the number of women in engineering in the UK has risen by only 6 percentage points, and improvements on racial equity and for other marginalised groups is even smaller. This phenomenon was explored through a Masters in Education dissertation project, which found that engineering identity and its tend towards positivistic approaches gives rise to specific barriers to improving equity, diversity and inclusion, in particular the discomfort experienced by academics when discussing EDI matters. For those whose territory, as defined by Becher, is numbers, material properties or vibrations, the nuance of human experiences and qualitative data can be very challenging. Whilst we expect our students to experience some discomfort whilst learning, as crisis is an essential component of Vygotsky’s zones of proximal development, not all engineering educators seem to expect the same of themselves. The MEd findings align with Boler and Zembylas’ pedagogy of discomfort and also with Queer Theory, in order to achieve social justice, dominant practice and power hierarchies must change for both staff and students - this is disruptive and likely to cause discomfort. For staff who have experienced and engaged with discomfort though, the study finds that it can be a driver for positive change, with difference from the average engineering identity acting as a source of power for EDI initiatives and a cause for joy and celebration.

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