This article investigates the learning opportunities in school subject departments for student teachers when participating in a postgraduate certificate of education (PGCE) course in England. The paper draws upon data gathered from a year-long ethnographic study to explain why learning opportunities were different for student teachers in separate school departments. Discussion focuses on three identified types of learning (learning by imitation, enculturation and innovation) and analyses how initial teacher education (ITE) resources were used within the school departments in order to work on student teacher learning. The paper concludes by highlighting some pertinent issues for ITE, and the implications of these for designing ITE programmes in the future.