Abstract
Objective: To identify students' perceptions of the use of discussion groups as a component of case-based formative assessment in the morphofunctional laboratory. Methods: Observational, cross-sectional, descriptive and analytical study, predominantly quantitative, with a sample of 204 students from a medical school in Amazonia, conducted in the first semester of 2019, using a semi-structured questionnaire with questions in Likert scale. Results: Participants were students with an average age of 24.2 ± 4.9 years. It was observed that the groups allow students to demonstrate their performance in the study (74.1%), serving as a space for socialization of the results obtained (90.5%), content sharing (95.1%) and clarification of doubts. (91.6%), and most are in favor of their permanence in the formative assessment (86.5%). Conclusion: Students present a positive perception of discussion groups within the formative assessment. As it is an exploratory study, further research is needed to improve the technique.