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Ray et al.  Advancements in Agricultural Development 
  Volume 3, Issue 4, 2022 
  agdevresearch.org 

1. Nicole Ray, Assistant Professor, Fresno State University, Agricultural Sciences 234A, Fresno, CA 93740, 

nicoleray@mail.fresnostate.edu,  https://orcid.org/0000-0002-1539-0879 
2. Robert Strong, Associate Professor, Texas A&M University, 2116 TAMU, College Station, TX 77843-2116,  

r-strong@tamu.edu,   https://orcid.org/0000-0001-5279-4808 
3. Courtney Meyers, Professor & Graduate Studies Coordinator, Texas Tech University, PO Box 42131-Lubbock, TX 79409-

2131, courtney.meyers@ttu.edu,  https://orcid.org/0000-0001-9099-3613 
 

43 

 

Measuring the Perceived Usefulness of Social Media 
Professional Learning Networks to Elevate Agricultural 

Development 
 

N. Ray1, R. Strong2, C. Meyers3 

 
 

  

Abstract 
Elevating agricultural development requires attention to aspects beyond production such as 
education and professional development. Individual demands for professional development have 
influenced the augmentation of recreational social media platforms as vicarious and functioning 
professional networks as well. The study’s purpose was to understand agricultural education 
teachers' perceived usefulness of professional social media use to better prepare themselves for 
positively impacting agricultural development. A random sample of secondary agriculture teachers 
responded to a self-administered survey instrument. New teachers perceived social media to be 
useful and also reported a greater number of minutes of use per week for professional purposes; this 
trend declined with increased years of teaching. Behaviors which teachers reported, in combination 
with their perceived usefulness and reported use, suggested professional social media use is 
supportive of andragogical assumptions. The elements of teachers’ professional learning network 
activities instrument could serve as a valuable tool in explaining the variance in teachers’ 
professional social media use. Data can be used to inform the development of online professional 
learning experiences and in preparation of new professionals. Future research should explore the 
extent to which learning networks prepare agricultural preservice teachers and offer professional 
learning for practicing teachers to improve online and social media communications for all learners. 
 
Keywords 

Secondary agriculture instructors, evaluating digital learning, online engagement, innovation 
adoption 
 



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Introduction and Problem Statement 
 
Improving educational access to individuals working in any aspect of the agricultural sector is an 
often-overlooked feature of agricultural development (Chaleta, et al., 2021). Of the United 
Nations’ 17 sustainable development goals, goal 4 highlights the need for quality inclusive 
education with effective learning environments for all (Li et al., 2021). Improving the volume of 
individuals with access to quality education is a fundamental component of goal 4 (Chankseliani 
& McCowan, 2021; Huynh et al., 2019). 5G networks have proliferated professional learning 
networks’ availability, which allows users to access the communal knowledge of instructors or 
researchers across the globe (Strong et al., 2022; Zhou et al., 2022).  
 
Online resources and enhanced accessibility have motivated teachers to follow others, 
exchange solutions, and broaden individual professional development experiences through 
social media outlets (Prestridge, 2019). Hillman et al. (2021) suggested social media are 
communal locations that serve as a conduit for professionals and nonprofessionals to improve 
learning respective to areas of interest. Social media has emerged as low-cost broad 
dissemination platforms for individuals seeking knowledge to improve their professional needs 
(Ahn et al., 2022; Luo et al., 2020). Markham et al. (2018) indicated social media can provide 
professional development experiences, identify collaborators and social systems for shared 
professional goals, and allow participation in discussion boards focused on professional 
discrepancies.  
 
Azorín et al. (2020) found digital professional learning networks can be a bridge from 
educational institutions to stakeholders yearning for professional development without 
resources or time to participate in face-to-face opportunities. Professional learning networks 
offer instructors digital peer relational support at the instructors’ time, location, and 
convenience (Chiu et al., 2022). Doleck et al. (2021) suggested professional learning networks 
optimize digital learning experiences that enable teachers to instigate self-empowered 
communal learning.   
 

Theoretical and Conceptual Framework 
 
Knowles et al. (2015) suggested adult training programs are developed and implemented to 
meet learners’ needs. The teachers’ professional learning network (PLN) activities model was 
created by Krutka et al. (2016) to illustrate attributes of teachers’ PLN participation. The five 
PLN elements are engaging, discovering, experimenting, reflecting, and sharing and include 
teachers’ social media usage as a professional (Krutka et al., 2016).  
 
The first attribute, engaging, highlights methods educators use to participate in their PLN and 
results from self-motives and self-identified training discrepancies (Krutka et al., 2016). Visser 
et al. (2014) reported impactful professional development as the primary motive of teachers’ 
professional Twitter usage due to increased professional social networks and perceived 



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beneficial content. Davis (2015) suggested autonomy is a benefit Twitter provides teachers in 
evaluating if and how often they read posts, comment, like, and retweet. 
 
Krutka et al. (2016) described discovery as serendipitous experiences with techniques, 
resources, and ideas due to PLN participation. Teachers experienced teaching methods, delivery 
strategies, and examples of lesson plans, even though they had not sought the information, due 
to their participation in web-based platforms (Dabbagh & Kitsantas, 2012; Krutka et al., 2016). 
Twitter #edchat users indicated the information channels the platform exposed teachers to 
including additional resources and new ideas from peer users was an asset (Davis, 2015).  
 
Experimentation is testing new information, regardless of purpose or intention, such as 
teaching strategies or curricula from PLN engagement (Krutka et al., 2016). Ranieri et al. (2012) 
found members who participated in Facebook groups where members did not have personal 
ties to other members in a face-to-face manner were more likely to pursue new projects as a 
result of their interaction within the Facebook group. Inversely, those in thematic groups did 
not experience as many new ideas as a result of their Facebook membership because new ideas 
were less likely to surface in a homogeneous group. The element of PLN experimenting (Krutka 
et al., 2016) encompasses teachers' learning process of implementing their learning in 
classrooms. 
 
Reflection addresses the teacher’s consideration of outputs and changed behavior based on 
their exposure and implementation to new ideas, curriculum, and instructional strategies 
(Krutka et al., 2016). Davis (2015) found examples of Twitter chat participants reflecting online 
and being challenged to examine their thinking by other chat participants. Twitter was used to 
inform Mexican farmers about loan applications (Strong et al., 2014). Educators reported using 
Twitter for taking notes and reflections in real time while in attendance at conferences, and 
those not in attendance reported following conferences through other’s tweets (Visser et al., 
2014).  
 
Krutka et al. (2016) suggested sharing describes the knowledge contributed by a teacher. 
Teachers shared strategies, outside sources, websites, and other resources in discussions with 
other teachers (Davis, 2015). The five elements may be joined to other model attributes to 
better comprehend the multidimensional complexity of PLNs and their purposeful or 
unintentional opportunities for teacher advancement (Krutka et al., 2016). 
 
Knowles et al. (2015) postulated andragogical assumptions are underscored by adults’ 
readiness and motivation to pursue individual learning goals. Teacher autonomy to participate 
in professional learning to address problem-centered training needs is a downstream result of 
engaging in social media (Davis, 2015). Krutka et al. (2016) reported diverse benefits for 
teachers resulting from social media exchanges such as access to additional content, new social 
systems of like-minded professionals, avenues to additional resources, and vicarious 
opportunities to broaden their global network of educational professionals. 
 



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Purpose 
 
The study’s purpose was to identify California teachers’ professional social media perceived 
usefulness and teachers’ school-supported professional learning, juxtaposed to teachers self-
reported professional social media participation. Specifically, research objectives were: 
1. Describe self-reported participation of professional social media usage. 
2. Assess the variance among perceived usefulness of school supported professional learning 

and perceived usefulness of professional social media engagement. 
3. Examine teacher career phases effects on social media perceived usefulness compared to 

reported professional social media participation. 
 

Methods 
 
A Qualtrics survey was emailed to a random sample of agriculture teachers in a single 
administration. This study utilized a web-based 58-item survey instrument (see Appendix A) 
that measured several constructs in the sample of 464 California teachers (Fraenkel et al., 
2019). Relevant literature in the area of qualitative (Davis, 2015), mixed methods (Visser et al., 
2014), and quantitative studies (Greenhow & Lewin, 2016; Ranieri et al., 2012; Xing & Gao, 
2018) were consulted to develop the instrument used in this study. Participants answered 
several demographic questions, but the only one reported in this manuscript relates to the 
number of years teaching. Participants were then categorized based on their self-reported 
number of completed years of teaching: new (1-3 years), early career (4-10 years), mid-career 
(11-16 years), late career (17 and over). 
 
The web-based survey explored several constructs through its 58 items. The instrument was 
developed with consideration of existing literature (Dillman et al., 2014; Lindner et al., 2001). 
Demographic variables allowed for description of career phase, highest degree, age, location, 
teacher preparation path, course assignments, gender, and declaration of whether or not they 
were the only teacher on their site with specific courses in their teaching assignment.  
 
For the purpose of this study, social media was defined with the examples of Snapchat, 
Google+, Pinterest, Twitter, and Facebook. Survey respondents reported their professional use 
in minutes per week for social media platforms. Using Davis’ (1989) scale, with only minor edits, 
teachers’ perceived usefulness of professional social media use was compared to their 
perceived usefulness of their school sponsored professional learning. The questionnaire was 
delivered via Qualtrics. Participants responded to six items on a seven-point Likert scale with 
anchors of 1 = extremely likely, 2 = quite likely, 3 = slightly likely, 4 = neither likely nor unlikely, 5 
= slightly unlikely, 6 = quite unlikely, 7 = extremely unlikely. A post hoc analysis supported the 
instrument as reliable (Field, 2013), with a Cronbach’s α = .96 for the construct of teachers’ 
perceived usefulness of social media in their professional learning, and a Cronbach’s α = .97 for 
the construct of school sponsored professional learning perceived usefulness.  
 
The elements of the online teacher engagement instrument explores the conceptual model of 
Trust et al. (2016).  The items in the instrument were drafted to explore the teachers’ online 



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behavior based on the definitions of each component of the Trust et al. (2016) model. Teachers 
responded using a seven-point Likert scale: 1 = strongly agree, 2 = agree, 3 = somewhat agree, 4 
= neither agree nor disagree, 5 = somewhat disagree, 6 = disagree, and 7 = strongly disagree. All 
constructs were considered reliable in post hoc analysis, as they were above Field’s (2013) 
threshold of Cronbach’s α = .80. Individual construct reliability coefficients were: sharing 
Cronbach’s α = .94, active engagement Cronbach’s α = .92, passive engagement Cronbach’s α = 
.88, experimenting Cronbach’s α = .98, reflecting Cronbach’s α = .85, and discovery Cronbach’s 
α = .94. The exploratory factor analysis of the instrument identified six factor loadings with 
acceptable eigenvalues (over 7). Of the factors that loaded, five were named to match the 
Krutka et al. (2016) model; however, the element of engagement was subdivided into active 
and passive by the researchers in this study based on the ability of researchers to observe these 
behaviors. Active engagement represents behaviors that could be observable by researchers, 
for example, making a post asking for a resource. Passive engagement represents behaviors 
that are not likely observable by researchers, for example, searching a folder for a resource or 
reading a post but not responding. 
 

Findings 
 
The elements of online teacher engagement scale has six constructs, sharing (M = 4.07, SD = 
1.05), active engagement (M = 3.34, SD = 1.70), passive engagement (M = 3.18, SD = 1.54), 
discovery (M = 2.65, SD = 1.23), experimenting (M = 2.64, SD = 1.09), and reflecting (M = 2.73, 
SD = 1.15). The attribute of sharing had the least agreement grand mean of the six constructs 
(M = 4.07, SD = 1.50). The lowest perceived usefulness of social media item was “I connect 
other teachers to resources. For example, tagging them or mentioning them in posts or 
retweets or sending them direct messages” (M = 3.62, SD = 1.83). “I share my feelings online” 
(M = 4.76, SD = 1.65) had the lowest level of agreement (see Table 1).  
 
Table 1 
 
Descriptive Statistics for Sharing (N = 164) 
Items M SD 
I share my feelings online. 4.76 1.65 
I post, tweet, share about my personal experiences relating to teaching. 4.33 1.87 
I share my opinion online. 4.33 1.72 
I share ideas online. 3.98 1.78 
I share resources online. 3.77 1.76 
I respond to others posts with text and/or links to discuss my past 
experiences. 

3.70 1.87 

I connect other teachers to resources. For example, tagging them or 
mentioning them in posts or retweets or sending them direct messages. 

3.62 1.83 

Note. M = 4.07, SD = 1.50. 1 = strongly agree, 2 = agree, 3 = somewhat agree, 4 = neither agree 
nor disagree, 5 = somewhat disagree, 6 = disagree, and 7 = strongly disagree. 
 



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Active engagement was measured with two items (see in Table 2). “I ask for resources” was the 
item earning the highest agreement (M = 3.14, SD = 1.75), and “I ask questions and/or for 
advice” earned the lowest level of agreement (M = 3.55, SD = 1.80).  
 
Table 2 
 
Descriptive Statistics for Active Engagement (N = 164) 
Items M SD 
I ask questions and/or for advice. 3.55 1.80 
I ask for resources. 3.14 1.75 

Note. M = 3.34, SD = 1.70. 1 = strongly agree, 2 = agree, 3 = somewhat agree, 4 = neither agree 
nor disagree, 5 = somewhat disagree, 6 = disagree, and 7 = strongly disagree. 
 
The passive engagement construct was measured with four items and earned (M = 3.18, SD = 
1.54). “I search for resources I need by looking in group shared folders and drives” yielded the 
highest level of agreement (M = 2.62, SD = 1.59). In Table 3, the least agreement was item “I 
search for resources I need by searching hashtags or key term searches within the social media 
platform,” (M = 3.48, SD = 1.87). 
 
Table 3 
 
Descriptive Statistics for Passive Engagement (N = 164) 
Items M SD 
I search for resources I need by searching hashtags or key term searches 
within the social media platform. 

3.48 1.87 

I search for people and/or groups I would like to connect with. 3.46 1.92 
I interact with things others have posted by using features such as liking, 
pinning, sharing, retweeting. 

3.15 1.82 

I search for resources I need by looking in group shared folders and 
drives. 

2.62 1.59 

Note. M = 3.18, SD = 1.54. 1 = strongly agree, 2 = agree, 3 = somewhat agree, 4 = neither agree 
nor disagree, 5 = somewhat disagree, 6 = disagree, and 7 = strongly disagree. 
 
The construct of discovery earned agreement (M = 2.65, SD = 1.23). The most agreeable item as 
depicted in Table 4 was “I discover new teaching resources I had not intentionally set out to 
find” (M = 2.33, SD = 1.26). The discovery item earning the least agreement was “I connect to 
individuals I might not have otherwise connected with” (M = 2.98, SD = 1.59).   
 
 
 
 
 
 
 



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Table 4 
 
Descriptive Statistics for Discovery (N = 164) 
Items M SD 
I connect to individuals I might not have otherwise connected with. 2.98 1.59 
I get connected to new teaching strategies I had not intentionally set out 
to find. 

2.66 1.33 

I become more aware of opinions and perspectives which are different 
than my own. 

2.65 1.42 

I learn about new technologies and digital tools even though I wasn’t 
searching for them. 

2.57 1.33 

I get exposed to new ideas I didn’t specifically go searching for. 2.38 1.23 
I discover new teaching resources I had not intentionally set out to find. 2.33 1.26 

Note. M = 2.65, SD = 1.23. 1 = strongly agree, 2 = agree, 3 = somewhat agree, 4 = neither agree 
nor disagree, 5 = somewhat disagree, 6 = disagree, and 7 = strongly disagree. 
 
The experimenting construct earned a grand mean score of M = 2.64 and SD = 1.09. “I test ideas 
other teachers have suggested” (M = 2.51, SD = 1.09) earned the most agreement (see Table 5). 
The least agreement was produced by item “I make changes to how I teach my curriculum” (M 
= 2.86, SD = 1.27). All experimenting items earned some level of agreement.  
 
Table 5  
 
Descriptive Statistics for Experimenting (N = 164) 
Items M SD 
I make changes to how I teach my curriculum. 2.86 1.27 
I experiment with new approaches to teach my students. 2.69 1.67 
I experiment with new teaching strategies in my classroom. 2.63 1.16 
I make changes to my teaching practices. 2.63 1.16 
I experiment with new curriculum resources. 2.52 1.12 
I test ideas other teachers have suggested. 2.51 1.09 

Note. M = 2.64, SD = 1.09. 1 = strongly agree, 2 = agree, 3 = somewhat agree, 4 = neither agree 
nor disagree, 5 = somewhat disagree, 6 = disagree, and 7 = strongly disagree.  
 
Reflecting was the least ranking construct (M = 2.73, SD = 1.15). Teachers indicated somewhat 
agree with the item series respective to personal reflection of online engagement. “I am 
reflecting on how I can become a more effective teacher” (M = 2.51, SD = 1.29) earned the 
most agreement (see Table 6).  
 
 
 
 
 
 



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Table 6 
 
Descriptive Statistics for Reflecting (N = 164) 
Items M SD 
I reflect on my experiences relating to ideas I found on social media.  3.10 1.40 
I spend time thinking about the teaching resources I am currently using. 2.59 1.24 
I am reflecting on how I can become a more effective teacher. 2.51 1.29 

Note. M = 2.73, SD = 1.15. 1 = strongly agree, 2 = agree, 3 = somewhat agree, 4 = neither agree 
nor disagree, 5 = somewhat disagree, 6 = disagree, and 7 = strongly disagree. 
 
Perceived usefulness of social media and school sponsored professional learning are identified 
by item for each construct with descriptive statistics in Table 7. Of all the individual items, the 
statement “makes it easier to perform my duties as a teacher” had the most agreement for 
professional social media use (M = 2.71, SD = 1.39), and the least level of agreement for 
mandatory school-sponsored professional learning (M = 3.94, SD = 1.41). Teachers perceived 
their professional social media use (M = 2.85, SD = 1.24) to be more useful than their 
mandatory school sponsored professional learning (M = 3.83, SD = 1.29). 
 
Table 7 
 
Perceived Usefulness of Professional Social Media Use and Mandatory School Sponsored 
Professional Learning (N = 164)  
Item  Professional 

social media usea 
 Mandatory school 

sponsoredb 
 M SD  M SD 
Results in significant changes to my teaching  3.14 1.40  3.89 1.38 
Results in improved learning outcomes for my students  2.88 1.32  3.75 1.35 
Improves my effectiveness as a teacher  2.84 1.29  3.86 1.41 
Enhances my effectiveness as a teacher  2.82 1.33  3.75 1.35 
Improves my ability to prepare and deliver high quality 
  instruction for my students  

2.72 1.32  3.80 1.36 

Makes it easier to perform my duties as a teacher.   2.71 1.39  3.94 1.41 
Note. Professional social media use Total M = 2.85, SD = 1.24. Mandatory school sponsored PL 
total M = 3.83, SD = 1.29.  Instrument adapted with permission from the Perceived Usefulness 
scale by Davis (1989). Perceived usefulness, perceived ease of use, and user acceptance of 
information technology. MIS Quarterly, 13(3), 319-340. Six-point Likert-type scale, coded as 1 = 
extremely likely, 2 = quite likely, 3 = slightly likely, 4 = neither likely or unlikely, 5 = slightly 
unlikely, 6 = quite unlikely, 7 = extremely unlikely. PL = Professional learning. a  In response to 
“Using social media professionally...” Reliability Cronbach’s α = .96. b In response to 
“mandatory school sponsored professional learning…” Reliability =.97.  
 
Overall, teachers perceived social media for professional purposes (M = 2.85, SD = 1.24) to be 
more useful than their school sponsored professional learning (M = 3.83, SD = 1.29). This 



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difference, .98, 95% confidence interval [.74, 1.21], was significant t(163) = 8.15, p = < .01, 
which represents a large effect size, r = .54 (Cohen, 1988; Lakens, 2013).  
 
New teachers have the greatest difference between their perceived usefulness of social media 
and perceived usefulness of school sponsored professional learning scores. Early career 
teachers express the least perceived usefulness of school sponsored professional learning. In 
general, as years of teaching increases, the perceived usefulness of social media in professional 
learning decreases, with the exception of the mid-career teachers, who had the lowest 
perceived usefulness. While there was no significant difference for new and early career 
teachers in their perceived usefulness of social media, when mid and late (n = 72) teachers are 
compared as a group to new and early teachers (n = 92), there was a significant difference. The 
difference of -.60, 95% confidence interval [-.98, -.22] was significant, t(162) = -3.17, p = <.01 
represents a small effect size, r = .24 (Cohen, 1988; Lakens, 2013).  
 
Objective three described the effects of the teacher career phase on perceived usefulness of 
social media compared to teachers’ professional social media use in minutes. Table 8 shows 
teachers perceived usefulness by career phase (N = 164) for the perceived usefulness of social 
media, where a low score indicates the highest level of perceived usefulness, and high score 
indicates a level of low perceived usefulness. New teachers had the highest perceived 
usefulness of social media, and mid-career had the lowest (see Table 8).  
 
Table 8 
 
Perceived Usefulness of Social Media and Weekly Minutes of Professional Social Media Use by 
Teacher Career Phase   
  Phase  Perceived usefulness of social 

media 
Social media use in minutes per 

week 

 n M SD M SD 
Mid 22 3.36 1.31 125.09 119.86 
Late 50 3.11 1.29 107.29 119.85 
Early 50 2.79 1.15 179.08 217.42 
New 42 2.35 1.05 196.05 155.84 

Note. Perceived usefulness of social media M = 2.85, SD = 1.23. Total Social Media Use M = 
154.29 minutes per week, SD = 167.71. Career phases based on years completed, coded as New 
= 1-3 years, Early Career = 4-10, Mid-Career = 11-16, Late Career = 17 and over. 1 = extremely 
likely, 2 = quite likely, 3 = slightly likely, 4 = neither likely or unlikely, 5 = slightly unlikely, 6 = 
quite unlikely, 7 = extremely unlikely. a reported in minutes of use on a combination of all social 
media platforms per week. 
 
Table 9 illustrates an analysis of variance depicting there was a significant difference between 
teacher career phase on perceived usefulness of social media, F(3, 160) = 4.61, p = <.01, ω2 = 
0.22, representing a low effect size (Cohen, 1988; Lakens, 2013).  
 



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Table 9                                                                                                           
 
One-way Analysis of Variance for Perceived Usefulness of Social Media by Teacher Career Phase  
Career Phase n M SD F p 
Mid-Career 22 3.37 1.32 4.61 .00* 
Late Career 50 3.11 1.30   
Early 50 2.79 1.15   
New 42 2.35 1.05   

Note. Career phases based on years completed, coded as New = 1-3 years, Early Career = 4-10, 
Mid-Career = 11-16, Late Career = 17 and over. 1 = extremely likely, 2 = quite likely, 3 = slightly 
likely, 4 = neither likely or unlikely, 5 = slightly unlikely, 6 = quite unlikely, 7 = extremely unlikely. 
* p < .05 
 
In a comparison of early career teachers to all other groups, there was a significant difference 
t(160) = -3.36, p = <.01, with a small effect size (r = .26). No significant differences in perceived 
usefulness of social media was identified when comparing late career to mid-career teachers, 
or late to early career teachers. There was however a significant difference t(160) = -3.03, p = 
<.01 with a small effect (r =.23) when late and new career teachers were compared (Cohen, 
1988; Lakens, 2013). 
 

Conclusions, Discussion, and Recommendations  
 
The elements of teachers’ professional learning network activities instrument revealed factor 
loadings in constructs that were largely supportive of the conceptual model developed by 
Krutka et al. (2016). Only a slight suggested modification of differentiating between active and 
passive engagement is suggested by the researchers of this study. Each construct represents a 
type of behaviors teachers report using in their online professional learning, which are 
supportive of a body of literature suggesting that professionals are engaging online for their 
professional learning purposes (Chiu et al., 2022; Davis, 2015; Doleck et al., 2021; Hillman et al., 
2021; Luo et al., 2020; Markham et al., 2018; Prestridge, 2019). The type of self-directed, time 
sensitive, and problem-based learning teachers reported is supported by Knowles’ et al. (2015) 
assumptions.  
 
There was a significant linear trend of teacher career phase on perceived usefulness of social 
media indicating that as the career phase increased, the perceived usefulness of social media 
decreased. While study participants believed their professional social media use was more 
beneficial than school supported learning experiences, there was still a positive relationship. 
For example, teachers that perceived their social media wasn't useful also didn't think their 
school sponsored professional learning was useful. Teachers reporting high perceived 
usefulness for professional learning with social media also reported increased social media use 
for professional purposes in minutes per week, which is supportive of literature surrounding 
teachers’ social media use (Prestridge, 2019).  
 



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The attributes of teachers’ professional learning network activities instrument and the resulting 
research could serve as a valuable tool in explaining the variance in teachers’ professional social 
media use. This data can inform the creation of online professional development and learning 
experiences to prepare new professionals (Seitz et al., 2022). The second implication of this 
study relates to the teachers’ career phase. New and early career teachers perceived social 
media to be beneficial for their professional growth, and also reported the highest use of social 
media in minutes per week. Therefore, career preparation programs for these young 
professionals should include development of robust individualized professional online networks 
that include social media applications (Ray, 2019).   
  
According to Chaleta et al. (2021), ensuring access to professionals is not always a priority. 
Therefore, teacher educators must anticipate their credential candidates will not have 
adequate access to professional learning once they enter the field and therefore must consider 
how they can support their preservice teachers in developing robust online professional 
networks as preservice teachers, then continue to support them through especially their new 
and early career phases. As suggested by Azorín (2020), institutions should take an active role in 
developing online learning experiences because new and early career teachers reported the 
most usage and perceived usefulness of online learning experiences in this study.  
 
Researchers should explore mid-career teachers' deviation from the trend of decreasing self-
reported social media use and perceived usefulness. Researchers should utilize the use of 
teachers’ professional learning network activities attributes survey instrument in other 
populations to explore the reliability and applicability in more contexts. Elevating agricultural 
development requires many aspects beyond production (Chaleta et al., 2021). Additional 
inquiries are needed to understand Extension professionals’ use and perceived usefulness of 
social media professional learning networks (Mikwamba et al., 2021; Strong et al., 2022). 
Research is necessary to discern the extent learning networks prepare agricultural preservice 
teachers and offer professional learning for practicing teachers to improve online and social 
media communications for all digital and face to face learners.  
 

Acknowledgements 
 
We would like to thank the cooperating California teachers who participated in our study. This 
project was supported by USDA Hatch Project TEX09890: The Adoption Impact of Food and 
Agricultural Sciences Curricula on Public Health. Author Contributions: N. Ray - investigation, 
analysis, writing-original draft, review & editing; R. Strong - investigation, analysis, writing-
original draft, review & editing; C. Meyers - writing-original draft, review & editing.   
 

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