In considering the questions of what sense teachers make of their professional education and what they learn during teacher preparation, two case studies are presented, based on an analysis of interviews across the first year of teacher preparation. The first student was enrolled in an academic-learning program which emphasized the importance of theoretical and subject matter knowledge in learning to teach. Field experiences were limited, brief, and connected with specific course requirements. The other student participated in a decision-making program, emphasizing generic methods of teaching and research-based decision making with personal reflection. Regular time was spent in classrooms aiding, observing, and teaching small and large group lessons. The studies reveal how differences in personal history and formal preparation can help or hinder the transition from commonsense to professional thinking. They also suggest that very little normatively correct learning can be trusted to come about in teacher preparation without instruction that takes into account the preconceptions of future teachers. (Author/JD)