Traditional lecture versus jigsaw learning method for teaching Medication Therapy Management (MTM) core elements.

BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE: To determine if traditional didactic lecture or the jigsaw learning method is more effective to teach the medication therapy management (MTM) core elements in a first year pharmacy course.

EDUCATIONAL ACTIVITY AND SETTING: Traditional didactic lecture and a pre-class reading assignment were used in the fall semester cohort, and the jigsaw method was used in the spring semester cohort. Jigsaw is a cooperative learning strategy requiring students to assume responsibility for learning, and subsequently teaching peers. The students were responsible for reading specific sections of the pre-class reading, and then teaching other students in small groups about their specific reading assignments. To assess potential differences, identical pre- and post-tests were administered before and after the MTM section. Additionally, grade performance on an in-class project and final exam questions were compared, and students were surveyed on perceptions of teaching method used.

FINDINGS: A total of 45 and 43 students completed both the pre- and post-test in the fall and spring (96% and 93% response rate), respectively. Improvement in post-test scores favored the traditional method (p = 0.001). No statistical differences were noted between groups with grade performance on the in-class project and final exam questions. However, students favored the jigsaw method over traditional lecture and perceived improvements in problem solving skills, listening/communication skills and encouragement of cooperative learning (p = 0.018, 0.025 and 0.031).

SUMMARY: Although students favored the jigsaw learning method, traditional didactic lecture was more effective for the pre- and post-knowledge test performance. This may indicate that traditional didactic lecture is more effective for more foundational content.