Physical education, sport, and health (PJKO) play an important role in developing students' motor skills, physical fitness, and cognitive and affective aspects (Bindayna & Salman, 2023; Sugiharto, 2020). One of the materials in PJOK that significantly contributes to physical development and coordination skills is rhythmic gymnastics. Gymnastics is a series of physical activities with structured and regular movements, aiming to improve strength, flexibility, coordination, and overall physical fitness (Sembiring et al., 2024). In practice, learning rhythmic gymnastics in schools often faces various challenges, such as low student participation, difficulty understanding motion concepts, and limited learning strategies that can accommodate differences in student abilities (Abdollahipour et al., 2015; Siregar et al., 2024; Kerr et al., 2019).

Learning rhythmic gymnastics demands physical abilities and cognitive skills such as recognition of movement patterns, understanding of rhythm, and coordination between music and movement (Slater et al., 2015; Hasibuan et al., 2020). The challenge that often arises is the lack of innovation in teaching methods, making learning monotonous and less motivating for students. This impacts learning outcomes that have not met the Minimum Completion Criteria (KKM) and the lack of active student involvement in the learning process (Widiastuti, 2022).

One of the efforts to overcome this problem is implementing a cooperative learning model. This model emphasises collaboration between students to help each other understand the material and practice movement skills (Budirahayu & Saud, 2023; Green et al., 2018; Mundelsee & Jurkowski, 2021). Two widely used models are Think Pair Share (TPS) and Peer Teaching. TPS allows students to think independently, discuss in pairs, and then share the results of the discussion with the class (Wong, 2022; Sholichah et al., 2022), while Peer Teaching emphasises the role of students as teachers for peers in small groups (Tanto et al., 2025).

Some previous studies have shown that TPS can improve interaction and concept understanding in learning PJOK (Lynott et al., 2022; Manda, 2025; Kamil et al., 2021), while Peer Teaching has been shown to improve students' confidence and motor skills (Widiastuti, 2022; Tanto et al., 2025). However, these studies generally focus on specific sports materials such as ball games or floor gymnastics; not many have directly compared the effectiveness of TPS and Peer Teaching in learning rhythmic gymnastics.

The five studies have not directly compared the effectiveness of TPS and Peer Teaching in rhythmic gymnastics learning at the junior high school level, even though the characteristics of rhythmic gymnastics, which require synchronization of movement, rhythm, and coordination, make it a unique context that has the potential to produce different results. Therefore, this study urgently addresses this gap by conducting a comparative analysis of the effects of TPS and Peer Teaching on rhythmic gymnastics learning outcomes at State Junior High School 4, Semarang.

The novelty of this study lies in the context of the material (rhythmic gymnastics), the level of education (junior high school), and the comparative design of two learning models that have not been widely studied. This study aims to analyze and compare the effects of TPS and Peer Teaching on students' rhythmic gymnastics learning outcomes. The findings of this study are expected to contribute to the development of more effective, inclusive, and motivating PJOK learning strategies, thereby increasing student participation and learning achievement.

Based on Table 1, the pretest results for Class 8F showed an average score of 79.18 with a range of 4 (minimum 77, maximum 81) and a standard deviation of 1.023. At the same time, the posttest scores increased slightly to an average of 79.85 with a range of 3 (minimum 78, maximum 82) and a standard deviation that decreased to 0.701. This indicates that after the intervention, the learning outcomes for rhythmic gymnastics in Class 8F remained relatively stable with minor variations in scores. In Class 8H, the pretest scores had an average of 67.21 with a broader range, namely 15 (minimum 59, maximum 74), and a standard deviation of 3.875, indicating a significant difference in initial ability among students. After the treatment, the posttest average score for Class 8H increased significantly to 79.59 with a range of 7 (minimum 77, maximum 83) and a standard deviation that decreased to 1.666, indicating improved learning outcomes and a more even distribution of student abilities. Overall, these data indicate that both the Think Pair Share and Peer Teaching models positively contributed to improved learning outcomes in rhythmic gymnastics, with a reduction in score variation indicating more equitable achievement across both classes.

Based on Table 2, Class 8F, which implemented the Think Pair Share learning model, experienced an increase in rhythmic gymnastics learning outcomes of 0.67 points, equivalent to 0.85% of the pretest average score. This increase was relatively small because the students' initial scores were already high, limiting the room for improvement. Meanwhile, Class 8H, which implemented the Peer Teaching model, showed a much larger increase of 12.38 points or 18.41% of the pretest average score. This indicates that Peer Teaching significantly improves learning outcomes, especially for groups with lower initial abilities. Overall, this data indicates that differences in students' initial ability levels influence the extent of improvement achieved. Peer Teaching is more effective in improving learning outcomes in classes with more varied and generally lower initial scores.

The results of this study indicate that both the Think Pair Share (TPS) model and Peer Teaching are effective in improving rhythmic gymnastics learning outcomes among students at State Junior High School 4 Semarang. However, the improvement observed in the TPS group was higher than in the Peer Teaching group. The improvement in the TPS group can be explained by its systematic learning mechanism. The "Think" stage allows students to process information independently, building cognitive understanding of movement concepts (Lynott et al., 2022; Top et al., 2020). The "Pair" stage allows students to strengthen motor skills through paired exercises, effectively improving body coordination and movement synchronization with rhythm (Puspitasari & Habibah, 2022). The "Share" stage allows students to practice movements in front of the class, encouraging self-confidence, movement presentation skills, and active engagement (Kumala, Rahmania, & Purnama, 2022).

Meanwhile, improvements in Peer Teaching can be attributed to the principle of collaborative learning, in which students act as teachers for their peers. This role enhances understanding because students must master the material before teaching it, according to the theory of learning by teaching (Fiorella & Mayer, 2013). In rhythmic gymnastics, Peer Teaching enables direct correction of movements between students, facilitates more personalized learning, and enhances a sense of responsibility toward the learning process of group members (Widiastuti, 2022; Tanto et al., 2025).

From a practical perspective, these findings have important implications for Physical Education teachers. First, through structured discussions, teachers can select TPS for classes with relatively uniform skill levels to maximize movement coordination and conceptual understanding. Second, Peer Teaching can be an effective strategy for classes with varying initial skill levels, as it allows more proficient students to assist others, thereby promoting skill equity (Casey & Goodyear, 2015). Teachers may face challenges in ensuring that every student is actively engaged (Cereda, 2023; Mesias, 2022), avoiding certain students' dominance in discussions or teaching, and providing timely feedback to maintain the quality of rhythmic gymnastics movements (Dyson et al., 2016).

Think Pair Share (TPS) was shown to have a greater impact on improving the learning outcomes of rhythmic gymnastics students at State Junior High School 4 Semarang than Peer Teaching. PJOK teachers are advised to implement TPS as a learning strategy, as it can increase student engagement, concept understanding, and movement coordination. For students, TPS provides an opportunity to practice collaboratively to increase self-confidence and mastery of techniques. Schools can make TPS a superior learning method in rhythmic gymnastics material. Future research should expand the sample size, extend the duration of the intervention, combine TPS with other strategies, and measure its impact on motivation, engagement, and long-term retention.

The author is thankful to State Junior High School 4 Semarang for providing the facilities and permission for this study. We also recognize that the pupils in classes 8F and 8H actively participated in the learning activities and data collection. The author also wants to express gratitude to the supervising lecturer and everyone who helped make this research feasible, directly and indirectly.

All data supporting the findings of this study are included in the article and its supplementary materials. Additional datasets are available from the corresponding author upon a reasonable request.

This research did not receive external funding.

The author officially certifies that there are no conflicts of interest with any party with respect.