Social media usage levels of middle school teachers for educational purposes

The aim of this research is to strengthen the connection between students and teachers by taking the opinions of secondary school teachers and to develop solutions for teachers to use social media for educational purposes in daily life in a more effective way. The research was designed with the survey model from quantitative research methods. In addition, causal comparison design and relational screening model were also used in the study. In the 2022-2023 academic year, a total of 277 teachers (131 female and 146 male) from public and private secondary schools in Balıkesir province were surveyed online. "Social Media Use Scale" and "Demographic Information Form" were used to collect data in the research. The information obtained with the questionnaire was transferred to the SPSS and LISREL pocket program. Descriptive analysis, Independent Sample t Test, ANOVA, Correlation and Path analysis was performed for the level of teachers' social media tendencies and purposes of use. As a result of the research, it is conducted that teachers use social media effectively regardless of all variables, but their usage related to education is low. It was determined that the majority of the teachers in the sample use social media for research and cooperation purposes. In the study, it was revealed that the social media tool that teachers spend the most time on is Instagram, followed by Facebook and Twitter, respectively. It was determined that female teachers who participated in the study used social media more than male teachers for the purposes of research, education and communication. It has been observed that secondary school teachers, who have 11-15 years of professional seniority, use social media for research, cooperation, initiating communication, maintaining communication, sharing content and educational purposes more than other teachers. Keywords: Social Media, Education, Purpose of Social Media Usage, Secondary School Teacher