Our findings demonstrated that hands-on experience considerably enhances students’ laboratory technique competency in comprehension and memorization compared to those exposed to other learning methods. It is conceivable the workshop cohort’s high scores were heavily influenced by the amount of time students spent in close proximity with an instructor who explained the stain procedure step by step. In this regard, five out of nine students attending the workshop obtained ≥10 correct questions. However, the discussion cohort group spent an equal number of classroom hours with the same instructor and only 1 student had a score of 10. In contrast, the students in the lecture group did not spend additional time with the instructor, and this cohort did not have any students with a score >9. These results reveal that the practical experience of the workshop, rather than the additional exposure to the Gram stain didactic material, was important in scoring high on the assessment quiz compared to the other groups. These outcomes are consistent with other studies that suggest the importance of active learning and student-centered pedagogy, especially in the sciences [12, 13]. While previous education-based research has identified peer discussion as a factor that improves academic competence , it is clear that in our study a practical experience provides a unique and advantageous learning aspect in students’ laboratory technique competency, given that there was no difference in the mean quiz score between the discussion and lecture groups and considering that the participants have comparable educational preparation. Previous studies in pedagogical methods have demonstrated that students exposed to hands-on practical experiences have a deeper understanding of the concepts taught in the classroom than the students who only have lecture-based lessons . Our findings support the idea that hands-on learning is more likely to engage students, but also that it can actually boost comprehension in diagnostic techniques.