The complexity of the educational systems and the interdependency of their different levels and factors are well recognised in recent literature about quality and equity of education and improvement of the system. Even though the overall quality of education in each country relies to a large extent on classroom practice, it is acknowledged that political and cultural factors within the system influences teaching and learning in each classroom. In this chapter we aim to identify and describe some of these factors in the Nordic countries and discuss whether and how they might be reflected in current classroom practice, particularly as documented in video observations from the LISA Nordic study. The focus is on three factors: policy on equity and inclusion; accountability system; and finally, teachers professional learning including both initiative teacher education and system for ongoing professional learning and support. As expected, the findings reveal both similarities and differences between the Nordic countries and drawing links between policy factors and practices enacted in classrooms is problematic. However, we summarise and problematise possible relationships between the three factors and observed classroom teaching and as such contribute to a more comprehensive understanding of how systems can foster quality teaching.