A Maker-Based Approach to Sustainable Digital Education in Physical Education: Implementation, Refinement, and Diffusion in School Contexts

This study examined a maker-based approach to sustainable digital education in physical education (PE) through a laser-shooting program implemented over a three-year period (2022–2024). While prior studies have largely focused on short-term maker-based PE interventions, less is known about how such practices are refined, stabilized, and diffused across school contexts over time. Using a qualitative case study design, data were collected from lesson plans, instructional artifacts, implementation records, field notes, and semi-structured interviews with five PE teachers, and analyzed using inductive thematic analysis. The findings suggest that, according to teachers’ accounts and classroom documentation, the program was perceived to reduce barriers to participation, diversify student roles, and improve instructional feasibility in indoor PE settings. Over time, the program evolved into a stable and adaptable instructional approach aligned with sustainable digital education, integrating physical computing into embodied learning environments. Diffusion occurred through teacher agency within informal professional networks and institutional training contexts. These findings highlight the potential of maker-based PE as a sustainable digital education approach that may support context-responsive participation, instructional adaptability, and professionally scalable innovation in school PE, with possible relevance for inclusive physical education contexts.