Prior to exploring the action that countries have taken to address issues of equity, it is crucial to understand which factors affect individual life outcomes, in order to identify areas of intervention for policy makers. This report presents a conceptual framework that captures various factors affecting individual life outcomes on three levels: namely, individual backgrounds, learning environments, and socio-economic and political contexts (Figure 1.2). The framework highlights comprehensive and multidimensional factors affecting outcomes that are not confined to parents’ socio-economic status.