The present report is a companion report to the TEDS-M publication Policy, Practice, and Readiness to Teach Primary and Secondary Mathematics in 17 Countries: Findings from the IEA Teacher Education and Development Study in Mathematics (TEDS-M) written by Tatto et al., (2012). That report presented findings about the nature and content of teacher education programs in the 17 participating countries, as well as the mathematical knowledge and pedagogical knowledge of graduates from those programs. The present report focuses on reporting data gathered at the national level and placing those findings in context. When interpreting the findings presented in the aforementioned publication, it is important to understand the national context for schooling and the different ways in which the participating countries organize and regulate their teacher education systems. Part One of this current report focuses on the national context for teacher education in the participating countries. Its purpose is to provide background information about those countries that will assist readers of other reports produced by the TEDS-M team. This information includes the following: the historical context of teacher education and current trends; the status of teaching and the relative attractiveness of teaching as a career; and the context within which teachers carry out their work. These conditions have a strong impact on the quality of people attracted into teacher education programs and, therefore, the quality of future teachers of mathematics. Part Two of this volume focuses on the policy context for teacher education, with special reference to the preparation of teachers of mathematics and, even more specifically, to the policies that regulate the quality of teachers and initial teacher education programs. Part 2 also documents the quality assurance arrangements operating in the 17 TEDS-M countries. These arrangements concern: the recruitment and selection of students entering teacher education programs; the assessment and accreditation of teacher education programs; and the certification of graduates as ready to enter the teaching profession. Part Two furthermore examines relationships between policies for assuring the quality of future teachers and the quality of teacher education practices and outcomes measured in TEDS-M.