1 Introduction

Effective professional learning is essential to teachers’ development regardless of teaching contexts since improved teachers’ effectiveness is associated with gains in students’ learning. With the rapid development of technology, professional learning activities and methods, including those for teachers, have changed extensively (Hall & Trespalacios, 2019). However, technological advances have also contributed to widening gaps between teachers who have access to elite technologies for professional development and those who do not, perhaps related to systemic financial constraints (Patahuddin & Logan, 2019). These ‘elite technologies’, as seen in this study, refer to those specifically designed for supporting teachers’ practices and development and, in most cases, users (or institutions) need to subscribe to be able to operate. The literature shows that the latter group of teachers turns to available and cost-effective sources of professional learning and development including social networking sites (SNSs) (Bett & Makewa, 2018). It is well evident that educational affordances of SNSs draw on how these tools help teachers in exchanging information and connecting with other educational practitioners (Carpenter et al., 2019; Visser et al., 2014). Importantly, other than payment for internet data, SNS users normally do not pay SNS providers for using their platforms, which makes these tools even more accessible.

Focusing on the context of Vietnam where teachers experience numerous disadvantages including inadequate resources, low pay for teachers and lack of support for professional development (Nguyen & Trent, 2020), we conducted this study to further investigate how teachers have used social networking sites (SNSs) for professional learning purposes. First, our study examined what activities teachers engage with on SNSs for professional learning, and addressed questions regarding the extent to which teachers’ frequency of SNS use for professional learning is associated with their professional work experience and their self-perceived technology competence. Second, we examined the professional topics teachers prefer to discuss in online groups of teachers on SNSs, and whether their preferences varied among different experience groups. Last but not least, we investigated factors potentially affecting the effectiveness of professional learning on SNSs from teachers’ viewpoints and examined the extent to which teachers’ SNS usage frequency and experience had a role in their perceptions.

2 Context

In 1986, the Vietnamese government initiated an economic reform called Doi Moi (Revolution), (re)opening its doors to the world (Hewson, 2018). This marked a continually expanding role of English language in the country as “a central part of its modernisation and international integration agenda” (Tran et al., 2016, p. 797). Replacing French and Russian, English has become a compulsory subject at school from primary to high school levels and the most popular foreign language to be taught at tertiary institutions across the country. English is widely considered a passport to success since high English proficiency brings opportunities for better-paid jobs and foreign education. Accordingly, more attention has been directed to ways to foster students’ English proficiency, which leads to more pressure for teachers both from the authorities and the public (Dang et al., 2013; Nguyen & Trent, 2020).

Various projects have been launched to improve teachers’ teaching capacities. Nevertheless, like many other developing countries, despite praiseworthy efforts from the authorities to improve teaching facilities, most Vietnamese educational institutions are unable to provide teachers with adequate resources for professional development (Le & Nguyen, 2012; Nguyen & Trent, 2020) Additionally, with low pay, Vietnamese teachers’ professional development becomes even more challenging when they face financial tensions in everyday life to make ends meet (Nguyen, 2017; Nguyen & Trent, 2020). As a result, up-to-date but expensive technologies for teaching practices and professional development often become unreachable for many teachers. For example, learning management systems, such as Blackboard or Moodle which are widely used in other countries under different names, are still unknown to most teachers of in Vietnam. To address this issue, many teachers turn to more accessible and cost-efficient tools for professional learning, including searching for assistance and resources on the internet including social media.

As shown in recent reports, with a population of 97 million, Vietnam has a strong internet user community, with almost 69 million people active on the internet and 65 million social media users (Kemp, 2020). The most popular SNSs in Vietnam included Facebook, Zalo, Facebook Messenger, and Instagram (Karjalainen, 2020). While the media reports the increasing popularity of SNSs among academics including teachers, little has been published about how SNSs have been adopted by Vietnamese teachers as a professional learning tool, or their perceptions about the educational affordances of these platforms. However, though scarce, research suggests positive evidence of SNS use among teachers for professional learning purposes. For example, Mai et al. (2020) investigated Vietnamese teachers’ interactions on two Facebook groups, one for teachers at tertiary level and the other for schoolteachers. They found that Facebook groups held potential as communities of practice to enhance Vietnamese teachers’ pedagogical practices and professional development. Le, Maor and McConney (2021) investigated Vietnamese EFL high school teachers’ perceptions about the use of SNSs for informal professional learning and found that teachers actively used SNSs for gathering and exchanging information and materials, seeking academic help and communicating with colleagues.

The lack of research about teachers’ use of SNSs in the Vietnamese context also reflects the fact that while empirical studies recognising the value of SNSs for teachers’ professional practices are present in the literature, how these platforms are used by teachers experiencing financial constraint is surprisingly overlooked. Responding to this gap, the current study focused particularly on how English language (EFL) teachers in Vietnam have turned SNSs from being tools used mainly for social life into virtual platforms for professional learning.

2.1 Theoretical framework

Focusing on teachers’ activities on SNS platforms for professional learning purposes, the current study relied on social constructivism as a learning theory informing the theoretical framework for this study. This theory promotes the view that learning resides in learners’ active engagement with knowledge and, most critically, in interactions with peers and experts (e.g., Schrader, 2015). Social constructivism emphasises that learning is influenced by learners’ experiences and particularly via diverse social interactions (Angela, 2013). These principles of social constructivism are well aligned with the educational affordances of SNSs, which have been extensively discussed in the literature. In particular, for example, technical features of social media can support users’ collaboration with peers through sharing and exchanging information and by stimulating discussion, thus supporting the development of a larger community of users (Ekoç, 2020; Patahuddin & Logan, 2019). SNS users are thereby empowered to develop wider and more diverse learning networks with less temporal and geographical constraints. Further, SNSs enable users to initiate their own learning content which reflects their situations and capacities (Qi, 2018).

Schrader (2015) theorised that the principles of social constructivism provide a strong framework to conceptualise teachers’ learning on SNSs while SNS technical features keep social constructivist principles “active” due to the ongoing development of technologies that enable easy social connectivity and collaboration. Indeed, the synergy between social constructivist principles and learning via interactions on SNSs has led to the introduction of such terms as e-social constructivism or online social constructivism (Ehrhardt, 2013; Salmons, 2011). Although social constructivism has been applied as a theoretical framework for various learning models (Angela, 2013; Maor, 2003), participants have, however, typically been students rather than teachers as learners. This study is designed to extend our understanding of the relevance of social constructivism to learning on online platforms, by focusing on teachers’ professional learning on SNS platforms, in a Vietnamese context.

2.2 Literature review

SNSs have gradually gained prevalence among teachers when they learned how to change their use of SNSs from being simply a tool for recreation and social interaction to virtual platforms for work-related purposes, including interacting with students and colleagues, supporting classroom activities and conducting informal self-learning activities (Goodyear et al., 2014). Various activities have been conducted by teachers on SNSs for professional learning purposes including but not limited to sharing practices and resources (Bernard, Weiss, & Abeles 2018; Ranieri et al., 2012), asking and searching for academic help (Le et al., 2021; Patahuddin & Logan, 2019), discussing teaching issues (Bernard et al., 2018; Ekoç, 2020) and connecting with colleagues (Bett & Makewa, 2018; Tour, 2017). Le and colleagues (2021) suggested that popular SNSs have become a prominent tool for sustained and on-demand professional learning of teachers with limited resources.

The value of SNSs in teacher professional learning is that these platforms transform the way teachers cultivate their personal learning network (PLN). As Trust (2012) noted, a PLN is a system of “interpersonal connections and resources that support informal learning” (p. 133). The word ‘personal’ in PLN is not used with a sense opposite to professional learning network. Rather, personal implies that learning is self-initiated, self-controlled and based on individual needs. Effective PLNs encourage teachers to maintain professional learning since they support self-paced and self-directed learning conducted in a connected learning community (Forte, Humphreys, & Park, 2012). Ekoç (2020) noted that within PLNs, teachers are offered opportunities to “connect with others and get other teachers’ expertise while offering their own expertise to the community” (p. 3).

The growth of SNSs has given teachers the opportunity and encouragement to initiate and manage their own PLNs as well as technically supporting them to strengthen the breadth and depth of their networks (Goodyear et al., 2014; Louws et al., 2018). Technical features of SNSs support teachers in choosing what information and resources to be part of their PLNs considering their capacities and situations (Goodyear et al., 2014), which enables teachers to make the decision about what direction their professional development will take. While top-down professional development sometimes fails to reflect teachers’ individual differences (e.g., learning rates, teaching situations), the flexibility that SNSs offer can make learning via online platforms more practical and enjoyable (Tour, 2017). SNSs also allow learners to have access to multiple resources and connections within their PLNs before choosing what fits best (Xerri, 2014). Furthermore, SNS users can access their online networks virtually anytime and almost anywhere, which helps learning to become part of their daily activities, as recommended for effective professional learning (Little, 1993; Richards & Farrell, 2005).

In addition to enhancing the development of self-directed, and autonomous PLNs, SNSs foster collaboration and connections. Wesely (2013) provided strong evidence that online platforms function as a medium for teachers to find community and get connected to collaborators. Technically, SNSs allow teachers to interact with other colleagues and experts for academic assistance regardless of geographical and temporal boundaries (Xue et al., 2019). These networks are essential for teachers to maintain ongoing professional learning and growth with support from a diverse network of people and resources (Trust et al., 2016). Nobly, McQuillan, and Littenberg-Tobias (2016) found that teachers’ online interactions strengthen relational trust among them by “allowing (teacher) members to experience their colleagues’ competence, sincerity, and reliability” (p. 204). They posited that the networks developed by teachers may become critical and powerful in their professional practices.

Prior studies also show that SNSs have strong potential to support teachers who are disadvantaged in terms of professional experience, and working conditions to develop their PLNs. For example, early-career teachers used SNSs to ask for assistance from more experienced colleagues (Smith, 2013). Mercieca and Kelly (2018) found that joining Facebook private groups was useful for casual teachers who have limited access to the schools’ facilities to find resources, search for academic support and share job opportunities. Patahuddin and Logan (2019) noted that SNSs have the potential to support teachers in remote areas to develop their networks for professional development. For example, in Kenya, where teachers struggled with insufficient resources, less support from the authorities and conflicting interests, Bett and Makewa (2018) found that teachers’ Facebook groups become platforms for them to discuss educational issues such as content knowledge, curriculum knowledge, student characteristics, educational contexts and opportunities for professional development. They highlighted Facebook groups as “more pragmatic ways of ongoing professional development of teachers” (p. 2) in contrast to formal professional learning opportunities that were still infrequent and insufficient.

In addition to the educational affordances of SNSs, prior research reveals some disadvantages and obstacles to the effectiveness of professional learning on these platforms. Time is noted as a critical factor in several studies (e.g., Xue et al., 2019), while Fox and Bird (2017) pinpointed that teachers can be reluctant on SNSs due to privacy threats and social tensions. Particularly, the overwhelming amount of information on SNSs might make learning on SNSs time-consuming and ineffective since users can “get lost within the system” (Patahuddin & Logan, 2019, p. 103). Further, there remains a lack of support from relevant authorities and official learning guidelines to ensure that learning on virtual platforms relates to institution goals and development (Jones & Dexter, 2014). Nevertheless, despite shortcomings, virtual social platforms have been increasingly recognised as a useful and effective tool for teachers’ professional learning and development.

3 Methods

3.1 Gaps in literature, research questions and sub-questions

Although the contemporary literature has recognised SNSs for their value as a tool to support teacher professional learning, research focusing on teachers who are at a disadvantage, due to limited resources, is still lacking. Addressing this gap, the current study is conducted in Vietnam, a developing country, wherein teachers are challenged by financial constraints (Nguyen, 2017) and have limited access to resources for developing professionally (Le & Nguyen, 2012). For example, many digital tools such as assessment and course management systems, as well as paid websites with recourses tailored for teachers’ practices and professional learning are still not affordable for most teachers from low-budget contexts. The study also addresses a lack of research-based evidence on how SNSs are used by teachers in Vietnam for professional learning even though mass media have reported an increasing impact of SNSs on teachers’ lives. The evidence for the study was collected from teachers themselves guided by three research questions (RQ) and five related sub-questions (SQ).

Focusing on descriptive information about activities conducted on SNSs for professional learning, we asked:

RQ1: In what ways, and with what frequency, are Vietnamese EFL high school teachers using SNSs for their professional learning?

SNSs have been favourably used in several contexts since they can be used with no prior knowledge of intensive training about computers and software (boyd & Ellison, 2007; Xerri, 2014). This heightens the potential of SNS use in the Vietnamese context, where many teachers are not provided with updated training about technology (Nguyen & Trent, 2020). Thus, we also asked:

SQ1.1: Is there a correlation between teachers’ frequency of professional learning activities on SNSs and their self-perceived technology competence?

Furthermore, it has been suggested that teachers in different stages of their careers use SNSs differently (Smith, 2013). The study investigated whether this reflected the case of Vietnamese teachers. We, therefore, classified teachers into three experience groups (i.e., 0–5 years, 6–10 years and over 10 years) and asked:

SQ1.2: Is there a relationship between the frequency of professional learning activities on SNSs and the length of teachers’ professional experience (years of teaching)?

It has been increasingly common for teachers to join online groups of teachers on SNSs. To examine the extent to which learning occurs in these online platforms, it is critical to investigate what professional development topics were discussed in these groups, as well as how likely it was that teachers wanted to discuss these topics. Therefore, we asked:

RQ2: What topics do teachers prefer to discuss on SNSs for professional learning purposes?

It is widely believed that teachers’ experience makes a difference in their knowledge and skills, as well as their perceptions about various facets of teaching practices (König et al., 2015). Therefore, the current study examined in what ways teachers’ preferences about professional topics for discussion varied. We asked:

SQ2.1: Are teachers’ preferences of topics to discuss on SNS groups associated with their levels of experience?

While much had been researched about teachers’ interactions on SNSs, teachers are still given little chance to assess factors determining the value of their learning on these platforms. The study also aimed to extend the existing literature by examining teachers’ perceptions about factors related to the effectiveness of professional learning activities on SNSs. We asked:

RQ3: What are teachers’ perceptions of factors impacting the effectiveness of their professional learning on SNSs?

Perceptions about the value of SNSs might vary with the frequency of engagement in these platforms (Carpenter & Krutka, 2014). The study further investigated whether teachers with different frequencies of SNS use would hold different perceptions about the importance of these factors. We asked:

SQ3.1: To what extent are teachers’ views about factors impacting the effectiveness of learning on SNSs associated with the frequency of their SNS use for professional learning?

Similarly, influenced by Smith (2013), we examined whether teachers at different stages of their career (experience) might have various perceptions about the factors that might affect the effectiveness of professional learning on SNSs. Therefore, we asked:

SQ3.2: Are teachers’ views about factors influencing the effectiveness of learning of SNSs associated with levels of professional experience?

3.2 Participants and data collection

Since we aimed to collect responses from teachers who were already used to SNS features, we made use of SNS platforms to recruit potential participants. Snowball sampling was applied (Brace-Govan, 2004) drawing on the researchers’ and, importantly, participants’ networks. The survey was distributed to the potential participants in four ways. First, this paper reported phase 2 of an exploratory sequential mixed methods study, so the participants of phase 1 (Le et al., 2021) helped to distribute information about the study to other potential participants within their networks. Second, research participation invitations were posted on one of the authors’ SNS accounts. Third, the research participation invitations were also posted on online groups of Vietnamese teachers. Fourth, the researchers also contacted via emails some influential Vietnamese educators who later helped to pass on the research information within their networks.

The teacher participants were thus recruited from an overall population of about 30,548 Vietnamese EFL teachers (Tri, 2022). The study attracted 393 participants. Teacher participants’ demographics are summarised in Table 1. It should be noted that in terms of gender, female participants dominated, which actually reflects the gender imbalance of the teaching workforce in Vietnam (see Le & Nguyen, 2012; Nguyen, 2017 for example).

Table 1 Teacher participant demographics
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3.3 Instruments

A cross-sectional online survey was developed and managed on Google Forms (https://www.google.com/forms). Google Forms allowed all teachers’ responses to be automatically saved in an online Excel spreadsheet before being downloaded for data analysis. Similar to the advantages of online professional development, the survey was administered online in order to attract potential participants with a diversity of professional backgrounds and situations. Additionally, the online survey allowed participants to complete it at their convenience since it could be accessed at any time using a wide range of devices (e.g., smartphones, laptops, desktops and iPads).

The survey was available in two languages: Vietnamese and English. The items were initially developed in English and revised several times by the authors. Since the paper reported phase 2 of an exploratory sequential mixed methods approach, the survey items were developed based on the findings of the exploratory study in phase 1 of the research conducted by the authors focusing on the same topics (Le et al., 2021). The survey was translated into Vietnamese by one of the authors before a Vietnamese postgraduate lecturer fluent in English was invited to evaluate both versions to make sure that items in the two languages addressed the same questions as intended. The two versions were piloted with nine teacher participants and revised several times by the authors based on the participants’ feedback.

The online survey included 13 items (11 closed questions and two open-ended questions) divided into 4 sections excluding a section that provided information about the study, and informed consent (see Appendix). The four sections included participant demographics, teachers’ use of SNSs for professional learning, teachers’ preferences of topics to discuss on SNS groups and teachers’ perceptions about factors associated with the effectiveness of learning on SNSs.

3.4 Data analysis

After approximately six months, 438 teacher responses were received. As a result of data screening, 393 were suitable for further data analysis. Forty-five responses were eliminated because they were incomplete, or the participants had not signed the electronic consent forms. The quantitative data were coded using Microsoft Excel before being exported to SPSS for analysis. Descriptive data analysis (i.e., median (Mdn), interquartile range (IQR), frequencies) was conducted to examine teachers’ demographics and their self-assessed technology proficiency. Also, descriptive data analysis was conducted to address RQs1-3 including the frequency of professional learning activities conducted on SNS platforms (RQ1), preference of professional topics for discussion in online groups of teachers (RQ2) and views about the factors related to the effectiveness of professional learning on SNSs (RQ3).

In order to extend and substantiate knowledge about how teachers use SNSs for professional learning, we proposed five sub-research questions previously listed. We sought to examine the influence of teachers’ demographics (i.e., levels of teaching experience, frequency of SNS use for professional learning, self-perceived technology proficiency levels) on their use of SNSs (including SNS groups) and their perceptions about the effectiveness of SNSs for professional learning. Given that the survey data were not normally distributed, non-parametric tests (i.e., Spearman rho tests for SQs 1.1 and 1.2 and Kruskal–Wallis H tests for SQs 2.1, 3.2 and 3.2) were conducted to answer the sub-questions posed.

4 Findings

4.1 SNS usage frequency for professional learning purposes

Before investigating teachers’ professional learning activities on SNSs, and their perceptions, we collected information about their frequency of SNS use for professional learning. We asked them to rate how often they used SNSs for professional learning purposes. It is revealed that teachers used SNSs for professional learning with high frequency showing that 295 (75.1%) often/always used these platforms for professional learning. Among the remaining participants, 85 (21.1%) sometimes used while 13 (3.8%) rarely/never used SNSs for professional learning. It should be noted that for the frequency of SNS use, and the frequency of activities, we attempted to make frequency levels clear for the participants by adding more explanation in parentheses: Never, Rarely (once every few months), sometimes (a few times a month), often (a few times a week), always (every day).

4.2 Professional learning activities on SNSs and frequency

This section presents the results of RQ1 and SQs 1.1 and 1.2. The main part of the survey focused on the frequency of activities conducted on SNSs by teachers for professional learning (RQ1). Teachers were asked to rate how frequently they conducted list of 12 activities (Table 2), which reflected the most popular activities reported in the prior exploratory research about the same topic conducted by the authors in the previous phase (Le et al., 2021). Also, an open-ended question was included to capture activities that might be missing from the list. We found that teachers engaged in the listed activities with high frequency as shown by their ratings on a five-point Likert scale, with higher numbers indicating more frequent use (i.e., Never, Rarely, Sometimes, Often, Always), as shown in Table 2.

Table 2 Frequencies of professional learning activities on SNSs and their correlations (Spearman r) with self-assessed technology competence, and teaching experience (n = 393)
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The optional open-ended question attracted 121 responses from teachers. However, most of the responses could be classified as part of the activities in the given list or did not belong to the research topic. For example, whereas the response Practice English speaking with foreigners is part of Improving English proficiency; the response Teaching online was not the focus of the present study. Other than those, there were three additional activities including publishing self-made teaching materials (n = 1), updating current social news to apply in their lessons (n = 2) and turning Facebook Timelines into a digital diary of professional activities for future reflection (n = 1).

Furthermore, to address SQs 1.1 and 1.2, Spearman correlations were calculated to examine whether the frequencies of these activities were associated with teachers’ self-perceived technology competence levels (i.e., below average, average, above average, well above average) and their work experience (i.e., 0–5 years, 6–10 years and more than 10 years). The results shown in Table 2 reveal that there were no statistically significant correlations between teachers’ frequency of activities and their self-perceived technology competence on three activities including researching for information, following experts/senior colleagues and improving English proficiency. For the remaining activities, the correlations were significant but weak with Spearman r values ranging from 0.09 to 0.20. Concerning the association between teachers’ frequency of activities and their levels of experience, there were no significant correlations in five activities, including reading information, sharing information and materials, connecting with peers, discussing educational issues and reviewing materials. For the remaining activities, including researching information and resources, downloading materials, improving English proficiency, sharing external links, following experts and sharing academic practices, the correlations were very weak or weak with r values ranging from − 0.13 to − 0.19. This would imply that SNS activity frequency is only weakly (yet positively) associated with self-assessed technology competence, and only weakly (and negatively) associated with levels of experience.

4.3 Teachers’ preferences about topics to discuss on SNS groups

RQ2 and SQ2.1 examined the professional topics teachers preferred to discuss in online groups of teachers on SNSs, and whether their preferences varied among different experience groups. Teacher participants were asked whether they are members of online groups on SNSs for teachers. It was found that 341(86.7%) out of 393 participants were members of online groups for teachers on SNSs. Furthermore, participants were asked to rate on a 1 (least likely) to 5 (most likely) scale how much they preferred to discuss six professional topics on SNS groups of teachers (RQ2). The topics included: (1) updated teaching techniques; (2) educational policies; (3) classroom management techniques; (4) English language usages; (5) critical education debates; and (6) knowledge about learners. As previously mentioned, the survey items were designed based on an exploratory study of the same topic conducted by the authors. The chosen six topics reflect the participants’ discussion about the professional topics they preferred to discuss on SNSs and also reflected the knowledge base for teaching discussed in the literature (Le, 2018; van As, 2018). As shown in Table 3, teachers were keen to discuss most of the given topics showing that median values were 4 or 5 on a 5-point Likert scale.

Additionally, to address SQ 2.1, we conducted Kruskal–Wallis tests to examine whether there were differences in teachers’ preferences of topics to discuss across three levels of teaching experience (0–5 years, 6–10 years and more than 10 years). As can be seen in Table 3, there were no statistically significant differences across three experience groups in four out of six topics including updating teaching technologies, educational policies, English language usages and critical education debates. The two topics that did show differences among experience groups were classroom management techniques and knowledge about learners. The mean rank scores of teachers with more than 10 years of experience were the lowest among the three experience groups. This might suggest that teachers with more experience were less dependent on SNS platforms for discussion related to how to manage well a class and knowledge about learners.

Table 3 Teachers’ preferences of topics to discuss on SNS groups and Kruskal–Wallis tests for differences in teachers’ topics preferences across teaching experience groups (n = 393)
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4.4 Teachers’ perceptions about the factors affecting the effectiveness of learning on SNSs

RQ3 and SQs 3.1–3.2 addressed factors potentially affecting the effectiveness of professional learning on SNSs from teachers’ viewpoints and examined the extent to which teachers’ SNS usage frequency and their teaching experience played a role in their perceptions. Teachers were asked to rate the importance of eight factors on the effectiveness of professional learning via SNSs (RQ3). Since the data were skewed, we chose median and interquartile range (IQR) to obtain a summary of teachers’ ratings on a 5-point Likert scale (i.e., 1-very unimportant, 2-important, 3-neutral, 4-important and 5-very important). Table 4 shows that teachers highly rated the importance of most given factors to the effectiveness of professional learning on SNSs, while the least important factors were support from peers and necessary training. An open-ended question was added to capture the factors that were missing from the given list. However, most of the teachers’ responses could be classified as belonging to one of the given factors, except for the factor of internet connection (n = 6).

Table 4 Teachers’ perceptions on factors affecting the effectiveness of professional learning on SNSs (n = 393)
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To address SQ3.1 and SQ3.2, we also conducted Kruskal–Wallis tests to investigate possible differences in teachers’ perceptions across different SNS use frequency groups and experience groups. As revealed in Table 5, teachers’ frequency of SNS use differentiated how they rated the importance of three factors including reliability of information and materials, time availability and desire to learn. The mean rank values suggest that desire to learn and time availability were perceived as more important to the effectiveness of learning on SNSs by groups of teachers who either rarely/never or frequently used these online platforms. For reliability of information and materials, teachers who used SNSs more often appeared to rate this feature as more important to the effectiveness of learning on SNSs compared to those who used less SNSs.

Table 5 Kruskal–Wallis tests for differences in teachers’ perceptions on factors affecting the effectiveness of professional learning on SNSs across different SNS use frequency groups (n = 393)
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Concerning the possible differences in teachers’ perceptions on factors affecting the effectiveness of professional learning on SNSs across different teaching experience groups (SQ3.2), Table 6 reveals that there was a statistically significant difference across teachers’ experience groups in their perceptions about the importance of four factors including reliability of information and materials, desire to learn, overwhelming information and materials and necessary training. Additionally, the mean rank values of teachers from more years of experience were lower than those with less teaching experience, except for necessary training. Also, 6–10 year experience teacher group better rated the importance of all four factors, compared to teachers either in their first five years of career or those who worked more than ten years.

Table 6 Kruskal–Wallis tests for differences in teachers’ perceptions on factors affecting the effectiveness of professional learning on SNSs across different teaching experience groups (n = 393)
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5 Discussion

This study extends existing knowledge about teachers’ use of SNSs for professional learning by investigating real-life experiences and views of teachers in Vietnam, a developing country wherein teachers are arguably more disadvantaged in receiving regular and qualified in-service training programmes, often due to constrained financial conditions. The study’s findings confirm the perceived educational value and integrity of SNSs by showing that teachers conducted a variety of activities for professional learning on SNSs with high frequency (Bernard et al., 2018; Cameron et al., 2013; Holmes, Preston, Shaw, & Buchanan, 2013). Furthermore, it provides strong evidence that key principles of social constructivism coincide well with technical affordances offered by SNSs to foster interactions and collaboration (Maor, 2003; Schrader, 2015).

Social constructivism highlights that learning is grounded in a social context through interactions with peers and experts. This key principle of social constructivism is supported by SNS technical features as they enhance connections allowing users to gather in online groups and collaborate with other like-minded people. In this study, most of the participants are members of online groups that discuss teaching relevant topics (i.e., classroom management techniques, English language uses, updated teaching techniques and knowledge about learners). Furthermore, teacher participants reported that their most popular activities related to connecting with peers, searching, obtaining and sharing materials. This implies that for this group of 393 EFL teachers in Vietnam, the use of SNSs for professional learning activities seems ubiquitous. The use of the SNSs and the affordances offered by these platforms, created opportunities for the teachers to engage in exchange of ideas and information, enable personal and social construction of knowledge, and collaboration among the teachers. Additionally, the current study supports another core principle of social constructivism highlighting the importance of learners’ experiences to the learning process (Angela, 2013). As shown in this study, teachers’ perceptions reveal that the self-perceived effectiveness of their learning on SNSs was somewhat determined by their uniquely different circumstances (i.e., teaching experience, technology competence and the frequency of their SNS use).

Spearman correlation tests revealed that the relationships observed between frequency of SNS use and self-assessed technology competence or levels of experience are generally small. This indicates that teachers are active on SNSs for professional learning purposes, regardless of their self-perceived technology competence level or their varying levels of work experience. This is also consistent with other studies, for example, Visser et al. (2014), suggesting that SNS for professional learning is user-friendly and accessible to a broad range of users with no requirement of intensive technical training. While the findings confirm educational affordances of SNSs for professional learning, they also imply that SNSs hold much potential for Vietnamese teachers and those in similar contexts where low budgets make it almost impractical to invest in digital tools requiring considerable funding for purchasing the tools themselves and for training teachers how to use them.

Empowered by SNS technological affordances, online PLNs developed in these platforms offer teachers necessary flexibility in choosing the time and the content for their own learning with regard to their personal teaching situations (Ekoç, 2020; Forte et al., 2012). Importantly, in addition to fostering collaboration among teacher users with other peers and experts (e.g., Ekoç, 2020; Patahuddin & Logan, 2019), SNS tools support teachers to take ownership of their professional networks as they can choose with whom to connect and how much they interact with them (e.g., Goodyear et al., 2014; Louws et al., 2018). Furthermore, all of the activities investigated in the present study can be classified into two collections: resources (information and materials) and interactions (with peers and experts), together identified as a PLN (e.g., Macià & García, 2018). This suggests that Vietnamese teachers’ interactivity on SNSs authentically and accurately reflects processes of cultivating online PLNs, rather than a collection of random work-related activities. Therefore, this study offers additional evidence that if used properly, these SNS platforms might potentially become a cost-effective tool for teachers’ professional learning in low-resource nations.

However, in order to harness the potential of SNSs in developing productive online PLNs, teachers also need research-based guidance. Although teachers’ frequency of SNS use for professional learning was not determined by their self-perceived technology competency, teachers with more teaching years tended to rate highly the importance of necessary training to the effectiveness of SNSs. This is reflective to a Vietnamese context where teachers, especially those in their later years, tend to be disadvantaged in technology skills in comparison to more recently trained digital natives (Nguyen, 2018). Also, reliability of information, overwhelming information and materials, and personal information privacy were reported to contribute to the effectiveness of learning on SNSs, which confirms unsolved shortcomings of learning on SNSs as shown in prior studies (Fox & Bird, 2017; Nonnecke et al., 2006; Patahuddin & Logan, 2019). Nevertheless, in the current study, these factors were perceived as the most influential ones. A possible explanation for this finding is that rather than having other platforms specialised for professional learning, these Vietnamese teachers were more dependent on SNSs for teacher learning outside of school settings and therefore showed more concerns about the amount and reliability of the information and materials.

Similar to prior research (e.g., Donelan, 2016; Xue et al., 2019), time constraints were also reported to be one of the most important factors that challenge the effectiveness of learning on SNSs. Time availability is always reckoned as a hindrance to professional development in Vietnam since teachers are usually burdened with a high teaching load, related paperwork and management tasks at school and tensions in daily lives (Nguyen, 2017). Further, this study found that desire to learn can be another important factor in teachers’ use of SNSs for professional learning. This supports previous research in the Vietnamese context, including a recent study by Nguyen and Trent (2020), indicating that many teachers overlooked continuing professional learning due to the belief that their life-long teaching careers are ensured from the moment they are appointed to a teaching position.

6 Conclusions and implications

This study suggests positive evidence to increase recognition of the educational potential of SNSs including the value of those virtual platforms for teachers’ ongoing professional learning. SNSs of many names (e.g., Facebook, X (Twitter), WeChat) have been investigated as tools for professional learning in various contexts. In the current study, however, we offered teachers who are comparatively disadvantaged by a lack of in-service training and tools for professional development, an opportunity to share their voices and views about SNSs in their professional learning. Our results suggest that SNSs have the potential to support teachers in cultivating their online PLNs. Therefore, even though the study’s context is in Vietnam, the study results are practical to other contexts where financial conditions are an obstacle to teachers’ professional learning and development.

However, for the effective application of SNS platforms for professional learning purposes, some challenges should be taken into consideration. Although no intensive training is required for teachers to technically use SNSs, guidance is essential for them to manage their participation in these online platforms cogently (Bett & Makewa, 2018; Visser et al., 2014). Firstly, the value and possible challenges of SNS use in professional learning should be recognised, rather than being simply characterised as ‘informal’. Awareness of the educational value of SNSs could be provided as an early part of teacher training courses. Second, teachers could be offered guidance so that their engagement with SNSs is not simply seen as following the ever-growing trend of using SNSs. It would also seem very important for teachers to be aware that while SNSs are typically "free of charge" for users (in a monetary sense), their disclosure of personal and/or user data carries significant risks. Users’ provision of their personal and platform use data are essentially what feed the algorithms upon which SNS platforms are built and become successful shared spaces. Training about how to minimise privacy threats is always recommended since teachers’ self-presentation and interactions in these virtual environments are usually observed by multiple audiences (Carpenter et al., 2019).

Furthermore, taking advantage of the burgeoning popularity of SNSs and online groups for teachers, Vietnamese teacher training authorities might consider joining in creating groups to broadcast legitimate information and updates for teachers, as well as stimulating useful engagement among teacher members. Here, the current study together with existing research on how teachers use SNSs for informal professional learning is valuable in providing a research-based reference for relevant authorities to offer guidance that fits the ways teachers already work and learn.

7 Research limitations

The current research is not free from limitations. First, the sample size of 393 teacher participants was small compared to the population of 30,548 Vietnamese EFL teachers (Tri, 2022). Therefore, caution should be exercised when generalising the findings of this research. Second, another posible limitation might result fromteachers positive attitude toward the effectiveness of SNSs for informal teacher professional learning. This study collected data from teachers who had been using these platforms for their professional learning, they might already have positive perceptions towards these sites when responding to the survey items related to their perceptions of factors impacting the effectiveness of their professional learning on SNSs.

7.1 Recommendations for future research

Further research is needed to address the underlying reasons for teachers’ interactions and presentation on SNS platforms. For example, we found that there were some activities in which teachers were not interested in an SNS environment and some topics that teachers preferred not to discuss in online groups of teachers. SNS users’ interactions within virtual environments are associated with various factors including but not limited to demographics (e.g., gender, ages), cultures, personal situations, identities and assumptions about what identities they are expected to demonstrate in the society (Fox & Bird, 2017; Lee-Won et al., 2014). Further research might be conducted to examine the possible associations between those factors and teachers’ interactions on SNS platforms.

Additionally, we suggest that research conceptualising learning on SNS platforms in relation to social constructivism deserves more attention. At the moment, most research focuses on learning in online environments where learning tasks are mostly generated by instructors or administrators (Maor, 2003). There might be some interesting differences between learning on these online courses and self-initiated learning on SNSs. When reconceptualising social constructivism as a learning theory in online environments, Woo and Reeves (2007) highlighted that learners experience various steps including learning and understanding tasks with peers and experts, generating ideas, exchanging resources and perspectives, negotiating and synthesising individual thoughts, fulfilling the tasks and reflecting on themselves. In the current study, it was indicated that teachers undertake these steps in knowledge construction on SNS platforms when they discuss educational topics and exchange resources with other teacher users. Nevertheless, further research can be done to provide more insights about how much of these steps is observed in teachers’ engagement in SNSs for professional learning purposes. This research objective can be achieved by observing and analysing online teachers’ interactions on SNSs rather than collecting teachers’ perceptions as in the current study.