This study comes at an opportune moment for Japanese and U.S. educators, policymakers, and researchers given the trends of global policy and equity-based reform. Discussions of academic achievement in both societies allow us to examine accessibility in mathematics education in order to best prepare teachers to serve the needs of students. Quantitative and qualitative analyses were employed to answer the underlying research question, how does privatization affect equity in mathematics achievement as observed in upper-level Japanese elementary schools? The students and sites were selected because of the turning point in educational paradigms that occurs during the schooling of preadolescents, including shifts in the types of instruction received and academic performance expectations. The contextual background then leads to a discussion on implications for teacher preparation programs in the U.S., where a culture of privatized education has emerged of academic tutoring and test preparation. The increasing public and private sector disparities serve as an urgent call to address issues of equity in both nations.