Does teacher-student interaction more effectiveness than peer interaction? An experimental study of flipped classroom in higher music education

A growing body of empirical studies has demonstrated the benefits of the flipped classroom in higher education; however, research in the context of higher music education remains scarce. Moreover, little is known about the relative effectiveness of different forms of interaction within flipped classrooms. This experimental study investigated the impact of interaction types in flipped learning for higher music education. A total of 108 students from music colleges were randomly assigned to one of three conditions: a flipped classroom with teacher–student interaction ( n  = 26), a flipped classroom with peer interaction ( n  = 27), or lecture-based instruction ( n  = 25). Data were collected on prior knowledge, learning engagement, self-regulation, and academic performance (recall, comprehension, and transfer). Results indicated that the flipped classroom with teacher–student interaction significantly outperformed both the peer interaction flipped classroom and traditional lecture across all outcome measures. By contrast, the peer interaction flipped classroom showed an advantage over lecture-based instruction only in transfer tasks, with no significant differences in learning engagement, self-regulation, recall, or comprehension. The findings underscore the critical role of teacher–student interaction in maximizing the benefits of flipped learning and offer both theoretical and practical implications for designing interactive flipped learning environments in music education and beyond.