Teaching Trans-Centric Curricular Content Using Modified Jigsaw

Cynthia Zheng; Zoee D'Costa; Rob J Zachow; Robert Lebeau; Gloria A Bachmann

doi:10.15766/mep_2374-8265.11257

Teaching Trans-Centric Curricular Content Using Modified Jigsaw

MedEdPORTAL. 2022 May 24:18:11257. doi: 10.15766/mep_2374-8265.11257. eCollection 2022.

Authors

Cynthia Zheng¹, Zoee D'Costa², Rob J Zachow³, Robert Lebeau⁴, Gloria A Bachmann⁵

Affiliations

¹ Fourth-Year Medical Student, Rutgers Robert Wood Johnson Medical School.
² Second-Year Medical Student, Rutgers Robert Wood Johnson Medical School.
³ Professor, Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, Rutgers Robert Wood Johnson Medical School.
⁴ Director, Office for Advancing Learning, Teaching, and Assessment, and Director, Cognitive Skills Program, Rutgers Robert Wood Johnson Medical School.
⁵ Professor, Department of Obstetrics, Gynecology, and Reproductive Sciences; Director, Women's Health Institute; and Medical Director, PROUD Gender Center of New Jersey, Rutgers Robert Wood Johnson Medical School.

Abstract

Introduction: Transgender (trans) individuals have unique medical needs and difficulty accessing quality health care, exacerbated by inadequate provider knowledge. Incorporation of trans health care into medical school curricula has increased recently to address this gap. Jigsaw activities emphasize positive interdependence through structured cooperative learning, resulting in increased interest and self-confidence. We implemented a voluntary 2-hour modified jigsaw exercise on trans health care with changes designed to optimize the structure for medical students.

Methods: The session was implemented both in person and virtually over 2 years with preclerkship medical students at the end of their endocrine/reproduction physiology course. The session featured a knowledge test with answer discussion followed by a clinical correlation-either a case discussion or video discussion. A pre- and posttest design compared students' knowledge, attitudes, and beliefs.

Results: Eighty-nine students participated. Their initial attitudes and beliefs regarding trans health care were highly positive and remained elevated. Participants showed increases in knowledge and self-confidence discussing gender identity and clinical care postsession. All expressed interest in further training and felt the session enhanced their understanding of trans health and reproductive physiology. On 1-year follow-up, students showed decreased knowledge and self-confidence in discussing trans health; however, scores remained higher than presession. Student surveys suggested formal integration of more trans health education into the curriculum.

Discussion: Medical students increased their knowledge and self-confidence regarding trans medicine and felt the modified jigsaw exercise was an effective teaching method. The results suggest that ongoing education is an important tool in optimizing trans health care.

Keywords: Discussion; Diversity; Endocrinology; Equity; Gender Identity; Inclusion; Jigsaw; LGBTQ+; Physiology; Small Group (≤12); Transgender.

MeSH terms

Curriculum
Female
Gender Identity*
Humans
Learning
Male
Schools, Medical
Students, Medical*