Dealing with policy expectations of mentoring newly qualified teachers – a Norwegian example

Figures & data

Table 1. Overview of case schools and informants.

School	School size	School leaders	Mentors
Case School 1 3 informants	900 students	Oliver: School principal Maria: Middle manager	Christine: Coordinating mentor
Case School 2 3 informants	900 students	Kalmar: School principal Bredine: Assistant principal	Ouren: Middle manager with responsibility for group mentoring
Case School 3 4 informants	750 students	Olav: School principal Kristine: Middle manager (1) Ingrid: Middle manager (2)	Hedda: Mentor under training
Case School 4 3 informants	900 students	Victor: School principal Silvia: Middle manager	Olga: Coordinating mentor

All names are pseudonyms, and for anonymity purposes, all principals are presented as male and all middle managers and mentors as female.

Table 2. Steps of analysis.

Aim		Tools of analysis	Empirical questions
1st reading	Familiarize with the data regarding the main aim of the study	Looking for empirical categories and concepts of perceptions, experiences, and legitimations	How do school leaders and mentors perceive, experience, and legitimize the organizational practices of mentoring of NQT.
2nd reading	Identify initial themes regarding perceptions and experiences, thereafter reviewing themes	Looking for statements regarding practices of organizing for mentoring and the actors involved.	How do school leaders and mentors report on organizing for mentoring? How do they perceive the policy intention?
3rd reading	Identify themes regarding the school leaders’ and mentors’ legitimization of organizing the NQT mentoring.	Looking for statements regarding school leaders’ and mentors’ legitimization of organizing the NQT mentoring.	How do the informants talk about supporting NQTs? How do the school leaders legitimize the set-ups?
4th reading	Reviewing thematic areas and categories connected to the theoretical concepts thinkable, the practicable and the calculable	Looking for whether the policy ideas of mentoring of NQTs are reflected in school leaders’ and mentors’ contestations of practices with reference to the thinkable, calculable, and practicable.	How are policy ideas about mentoring of NQTs reflected in the practice of organizing for mentoring?