Grounded in the construct of community of practice, the authors discuss the Teacher-Learner Community (TLC), where the goal is to support the development of pre-service teachers' understanding of culture, community, and background in learning. Insights and perceptions of pre-service teachers were gathered after implementing a TLC designed to prepare them to work with English language learners (ELLs). Sharing these insights and perceptions, the authors discuss TLC's potential role in influencing pre-service teachers' beliefs and understanding of ELLs. (Contains 1 footnote.)