Effectiveness of the Jigsaw Technique as a Teaching-Learning Method in Teaching Surgery to Phase II MBBS Students in a Medical College in Nagaland: A Quasi-experimental Mixed Methodology Study
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Published on: May 9, 2015
Nilokali Chishi1, Loreno Enny1, Kuotho T Nyuwi1
1Department of General Surgery, Nagaland Institute of Medical Sciences and Research, Kohima, Nagaland, India.
Background:
Jigsaw technique, one type of cooperative learning, was proposed by Aronson et al. in the 1970s, wherein students work in small groups with a fixed set of learning objectives to reach a common goal. This study aimed to evaluate the effectiveness as well as the perception of the jigsaw technique as a teaching-learning method in teaching surgery to Phase II MBBS students.
Materials And Methods:
A quasi-experimental mixed methodology study was conducted on Phase II MBBS students attending surgery. Five contact sessions were held, of 1 h each, on different topics. Assessment was done by a pre- and posttest consisting of prevalidated multiple-choice questions. Feedbacks were taken at the end of the fifth contact session by a prevalidated questionnaire.
Results:
All five sessions of the jigsaw technique showed statistically significant improvements in posttest scores (P < 0.001). The responses for "strongly agree" and "agree" were consistently the highest across all 10 feedback items. Students found the jigsaw technique helpful for understanding, retention, summarization, and engagement.
Conclusion:
The jigsaw technique is effective and helps in understanding, retention, and summarization of topics in surgery. It can be introduced in Phase II as a reinforcement tool in teaching-learning surgery.

