This article describes the development of the authors' understanding of the contradictions in their mathematics teacher education practice. This understanding emerged from contrasting analyses of the impact of the authors' practices in mathematics content courses versus mathematics methods courses. Examples of the authors' work with two students,…

The role of methods courses to help prospective elementary teachers learn to teach mathematics was investigated. The influence of past experience on preservice teachers, their lack of subject knowledge, and the lack of time set aside for a methods course are discussed. (KR)