‘Leaping‐in’ and ‘leaping‐ahead’: A hermeneutic phenomenology study of teachers’ lived experiences with physical computing in secondary schools

While research on physical computing has often focused on curricula and student outcomes, the lived experiences of teachers remain underexplored. This study addresses that gap by conceptualising physical computing as a practice shaped by both care and technical demand. Drawing on a hermeneutic-phenomenological approach informed by Heidegger's notions of care (Sorge) and Being-with (Mitsein), Gadamer's fusion of horizons, and Moustakas's practice of indwelling, the study engaged five heads of computing departments in semi-structured interviews conducted over a period of thirteen months, producing forty-two crafted stories for interpretive analysis.

Analysis generated four interrelated themes: leaping-in (troubleshooting as care), leaping-ahead (anticipatory planning), mentoring (relational scaffolds for novices), and professional identity (continually reshaped yet grounded in anchors such as equity and computational thinking as literacy). Together, these themes underpin the Unified Model of Care-Driven Physical Computing Pedagogy.

The thesis makes three contributions to knowledge: (1) it reframes physical computing pedagogy as relational and embodied by placing care at its centre; (2) it demonstrates the methodological value of crafted stories as a vehicle for hermeneutic interpretation, forming the foundation for the Unified Model of Care-Driven Physical Computing Pedagogy; and (3) it offers new insight into how teacher identity and affect shape curriculum development. The study shows that embedding physical computing sustainably requires more than equipment or training; it depends on organisational cultures that recognise care as pedagogical expertise and safeguard teachers' capacity for professional judgement. When such recognition is present, physical computing can move from a peripheral initiative to a sustained, human-centred practice within the curriculum.