This chapter outlines a brief history of the current educational reforms in Japan. Against this historical contexts, the following issues are discussed: (1) the prioritization of English as the international language; (2) the discourse of Japanese incompetence in English; (3) the setting of English proficiency benchmarks; (4) the early introduction of English and the implications for the role of homeroom teachers; and (5) the power relationship between homeroom teachers and Assistant Language Teachers. The chapter argues that the imposition of policies and standards on teachers and teacher educators will lead to de-professionalization as they are deprived of the opportunities to exercise their own professional judgment. It suggests ways in which de-professionalization of teachers can be avoided and the power imbalance can be redressed between Japanese teachers of English and native English speaking teachers.