Part 2 of the “Active Learning Strategies with Engageli Tables” series
Check out the other articles in the series here:
Welcome back to our series on active learning! In our last article, we talked about Think-Pair-Share. Today, we’re covering a great strategy for getting students to really own their learning: the Jigsaw method.
If you’ve ever felt like you’re talking to a quiet audience, or if you’re looking for a way to cover complex topics without lecturing for an hour, then this strategy is for you. It’s a fantastic way to build both individual accountability and a real sense of teamwork in your class.
Best for: Helping students master different parts of a larger topic and teach each other
Time needed: 30-45 minutes (can be adjusted)
Setup: Home Groups → Expert Groups → Home Groups
The Jigsaw method is a cooperative learning strategy where a larger topic is broken down into smaller, manageable pieces. Students are first organized into home groups. Each member of the home group is assigned a different piece of the topic to become an expert on.
They then meet with students from other groups who have the same piece in an expert group to study it together. Finally, they return to their home groups to teach their piece to the rest of their group members. By the end, every student has learned about the entire topic by fitting the individual pieces together, just like a jigsaw puzzle.
The Jigsaw method has been around for decades. It was developed back in the 1970s by a social psychologist named Elliot Aronson, who was looking for a way to encourage students in newly integrated schools to work together. The basic idea is simple but powerful: each student gets a piece of the puzzle, and they have to work together to see the whole picture.
This structure naturally builds what researchers call positive interdependence. When every student has a unique and essential piece of information, they have to rely on each other. They are each responsible for a part of the group’s success. This process of teaching others also helps the student-teacher lock in their own understanding. Research has consistently shown that this method boosts student achievement and improves how they relate to one another in the classroom.
The Jigsaw method can feel a little chaotic to manage in a physical classroom, with students moving all over the space. Trying to do it online with traditional breakout rooms can be even tougher, as you lose that connection to the groups and waste time bringing everyone back. This is where having a tool that’s built for this kind of flexible group work really helps.
With a platform like Engageli, you can move students between their home tables and their expert tables with just a couple of clicks. You can also easily peek in on the expert groups to see how they’re doing. If they are stuck, you can join at the right moment to offer a little guidance or answer a question. The shared table whiteboards and persistent private notes give students a space to work together and prepare what they’re going to teach.
Start with your students at their regular tables. These are their home groups.
Next, decide how you’ll break up the day’s topic. You’ll want to create 3-5 different subtopics. For an elementary science lesson on rainforest layers, you might divide the content into:
Assign one subtopic to each student at every table. The key is that each student only has access to their assigned piece of the material.
Now it’s time to form the expert groups. Move all the students who have the same subtopic to a designated table. So, all the Canopy experts will be at one table, all the Forest Floor experts at another, and so on. You can pre-label the tables ahead of class to save time and help students remember their topic. Once everyone is in their groups, switch the class to Table Mode so they can talk and collaborate.
Their job in these expert groups is to read through their material together and get ready to teach it to their home groups. Encourage them to use their table’s whiteboard to pull out the most important facts or draw a diagram. This is a great time to circulate between the tables, listening in to make sure they’re on the right track and helping any groups that might be stuck.
Bring everyone back to their original home groups. Now, each table has an expert on every subtopic.
Have each student take a turn teaching their part to the rest of their group. The other students should be encouraged to ask questions to make sure they understand. This is the magic of the Jigsaw method. As students explain the material, you can almost see the lightbulbs go on as they solidify their own understanding. By the end, every student has learned about all the different parts of the topic, and they’ve done it by working together.
To wrap up, you can have a quick whole-class share-out or use an exit ticket with a question from each subtopic to check for understanding.
The Jigsaw method is a way to build a classroom culture where students are active participants in their own learning and feel a real sense of responsibility to their peers. It’s a powerful tool for any teacher looking to increase engagement and foster deeper understanding.
Give it a try in your next unit and see what a difference it makes for your students.
Interested in workshopping this strategy with an expert? Schedule a strategy session with our team to brainstorm how you can make collaboration more effective and manageable in your online classroom.
Stay tuned for the next post in our series, where we’ll explore another strategy to bring your online classroom to life!