Towards Variation in Professional Learning Practices: A Case Study on Collaborative Inquiry with Language Teacher Candidates.

This article examines the variation in collaborative inquiry (CI) practices among second language (L2) teacher candidates, particularly those specializing in French second language (FSL) education, within an initial teacher education (ITE) program in Ontario, Canada. CI is a professional learning framework where educators collaboratively investigate shared problems to develop context-specific practices, fostering teacher autonomy and collaborative professionalism. Through qualitative case studies of four voluntary professional learning communities (PLCs) focusing on themes such as FSL pedagogy, universal design for learning, classroom management, and mental health, the study reveals diverse, non-linear trajectories shaped by group goals, responses to challenges, and the integration of subject-specific and broader professional concerns. The findings highlight the importance of allowing teacher candidates autonomy in shaping their CI practices to support differentiated professional learning that reflects the complexity of educational contexts and resists standardized, one-size-fits-all approaches.