Abstract:

A practical session on biological rhythms was implemented in the Physiology and Pathophysiology III course of the Pharmacy Degree at the Universitat de Barcelona, which covers the respiratory, urinary, endocrine, and reproductive systems, as well as thermoregulation. The session uses the jigsaw collaborative learning method. Students worked in small groups (three to four members), each assigned a different biological rhythm to study (body temperature, cortisol, aldosterone, or luteotropin). After studying their topic, groups prepared a short presentation and explained their findings to the rest of the class, allowing students to become “experts” in one rhythm while learning about the others through peer teaching.

The activity was carried out during two academic years (2024-2025 and 2025-2026). In 2025-2026, the workload associated with each rhythm was slightly reduced and some activities were redefined, giving students more time to prepare their presentations. In addition, the oral presentation was not graded, whereas in 2024-2025 it contributed to the course assessment.

Student perceptions were evaluated through course surveys assessing overall appreciation of the activity, the value of collaborative preparation, the experience of presenting results to peers, and the relative preference of this session compared with the other practical sessions in the course (spirometry, histology of several tissues of the course’s organic systems, and renal system anatomy and physiology).

In 2025-2026 (n = 297), 72.1% of students rated the biological rhythms activity positively (scores 2 or 3 on a 0–3 scale), while only 5.7% gave the lowest score. Results were similar in 2024-2025 (n = 315), when 78.4% of students rated the activity positively. These results indicate that the activity is generally well received by students across both cohorts. Collaborative preparation was also well valued, with positive ratings from 66% of students in 2025-2026 and 70.1% in 2024-2025. Students were somewhat less enthusiastic about preparing and presenting results to other groups (48.3% positive responses in 2025–2026 and 50.8% in 2024–2025), and the fact that the presentation was graded in 2024–2025 but not in 2025–2026 did not appear to influence this perception.

Students also ranked the four practical sessions according to preference (1 = most liked or most useful; 4 = least liked). In 2025-2026, spirometry was the most preferred (mean = 1.93), followed by biological rhythms (2.41) and histology (2.42), while the renal system session ranked last (3.24). Only 13.4% of students placed biological rhythms last. In contrast, in 2024–2025 the biological rhythms session was the least preferred activity (mean ≈ 3.02), with 45.4% of students ranking it last.

Overall, the biological rhythms practical based on the jigsaw method is positively evaluated by most students and promotes collaborative learning. Students particularly value teamwork, although preparing and delivering presentations is perceived somewhat less positively. The modifications introduced in 2025–2026 may have improved its relative perception among the course’s practical sessions while maintaining strong engagement with active and peer-based learning.

Keywords:

Jigsaw method, collaborative learning, team-based learning, active learning.