Socially shared metacognitive supports in flipped or online classroom collaborative groups: examining the effect on motivation, group metacognition, group belonging, and cohesion

Abstract Collaborative learning is a fundamental skill based on the construction of knowledge through collaborative discussion in order to comprehend diverse perspectives. In online and flipped classrooms, which have become popular in higher education, learning interventions that provide a high level of collaborative cognitive support are required to increase active participation and enhance learning. At this point, there is a need to explain the contribution of socially shared metacognition (SSM) support for effective collaborative work in online and flipped classrooms. This study aims to investigate the effect of online and flipped classes supported by SSM on group metacognition (MCO), group belonging (GB), cohesion, and motivation. For this purpose, an experimental intervention consisting of two sub-studies was conducted with 330 university students. Descriptive statistics and partial least squares-structural equation modeling (PLS-SEM) analyses were employed in the analysis of the data. As a result of the research, when the pretest and posttest results were compared in the group provided with flipped SSM support, it was found that group belonging, metacognition, cohesion, and intrinsic and extrinsic motivation scores showed significant and positive development. In the online SSM-supported group, group cohesion (GC) showed a significant increase in the context of the pretest and posttest scores. In MGA analysis, it was concluded that the path coefficient differentiation of group metacognition was higher in those who received online SSM support. SSM support positively affected the perception of task difficulty in both flipped and online classes.