Mentors as agents of policy learning: (Im)possible mission? The case of a national policy implementation in teacher education

This study investigates the complexities of implementing a new teacher education policy in which in-service mentors function as agents of policy learning within Israel’s centralised educational system. To explore this complexity, we draw on agency perspectives, combining institutional logics theory and sense-making theory within the structure-agency debate in policy implementation studies. We focus on how mentors’ framings of professional situations guide their decision-making and actions. Our findings suggest that mentors exhibit distinctive structure-agency framing patterns: discrete, intersecting and holistic, that shape how they interpret implementation arrangements and navigate tensions within a network of stakeholders. The study highlights the importance of recognising mentor types according to their framing patterns, which influence their roles as policy learning agents. We propose incorporating these insights into the design of mentor training and professional development programmes to better support mentors’ agency and enhance the implementation of policy initiatives in complex educational systems.