The dynamic forces shaping education in the 21st century have led countries across the world to pursue sweeping educational reforms. Despite significant investment and radical approaches including system and organisational restructuring, managerialism and marketisation, evidence of sustained impact in the classroom remains elusive. Using the example of an emerging systemic approach to educational change in Scotland, this article analyses an aligned approach to improvement, encompassing teaching, leadership, curriculum, self evaluation and related structural support. In this context, it becomes necessary to re‐imagine the profession of teaching as one in which teachers are active as authors and drivers of educational change and career‐long professional growth is the norm. The emerging approach to reform in Scotland reflects this interpretation of effective reform. Its curriculum reform, ‘Curriculum for Excellence’, focuses on the development of capacities in young people and is much less prescriptive than traditional forms of curriculum development. Scotland's now well‐established approach to inspection and self‐evaluation provides a further pillar in the overall reform programme. More recently, major developments have been set in train in relation to teacher education and school leadership. Following a fundamental review of teacher education, a radical and systemic programme of reform of the teaching profession is now under way. The article outlines the main features of the approach and considers the main factors which will influence its likelihood of success.