Can Metaphors Speak for Themselves? Situating the Coding of Images on School Experience

This article introduces situated coding, a hybrid methodological practice that integrates standardized categorization with contextualized interpretation. The study draws on qualitative and mixed methods to explore the use of metaphors as a lens for investigating students’ lived experiences of schooling. Following a critical review of the literature, findings are presented from a school guidance project involving 325 upper secondary school students in Italy. Metaphors were elicited through an open-ended question embedded in standardized questionnaires and subsequently revisited in the workshops with students. Quantitative analysis enabled the identification of recurrent patterns and group differences, while situated, multimodal interpretation revealed otherwise invisible dimensions, including temporal orientation, experiential focus, and the significance of non-responses. Situated coding is proposed as a practice that goes beyond statistical measurability to recover the semantic richness and reflexive depth of qualitative interpretation. Metaphors are understood not merely as empirical data but as conceptual and relational devices that foster sensemaking, critical reflection, and the co-construction of meaning in educational research contexts.