Social Media Learning Work Groups for Youth Skills Development in Agricultural Learnership Programs
Keywords:
Social media, Sustainable learning environment, Agricultural learnership, Youth, Skills developmentAbstract
Social media has prompted researchers to reconsider how we teach and train within educational research discourse. It is essential to investigate and understand how social media platforms contribute to the teaching and learning process. These platforms offer various functions, such as creating groups via smartphones, which are used to gather learners attending the same classes and are expected to perform the same tasks. In youth skills development programs, like learnerships for agricultural courses, many participants have little to no prior agricultural education. This paper examines the importance of social media work groups for young learners in such programs. Initially, learners often feel confused about what they are being taught. The introduction of social media work groups has created an environment where learners can share and review information collaboratively. These groups turned out to be both enjoyable and effective tools for reinforcing training content and motivating learners to continue. They also serve as educational and social platforms, helping learners develop social skills. The study clearly shows that social media work groups foster a sustainable learning environment during agricultural learnerships. It recommends further research into the ethical and sustainable use of social media work groups in education, as well as ways to improve their integration into teaching and learning processes.
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