Research Skills Development (RSD) is about explicit and coherent development of research literacy and skills in a systematic manner from the undergraduate to postgraduate levels in University curricula.Integration of research literacy and skills in USP curricula is intended to produce graduates who are ‘discerning consumers’ of information, able to undertake research and apply research findings to address various challenges facing the Pacific region.

BACKGROUND TO RSD AT USP

Under the Strategic Total Academic Review (STAR) process at the University of the South Pacific, Working Group 5 (constituting of USP staff) was tasked to determine the best way to incorporate research skills and literacy in USP curricula. Working Group 5 found that in general the Research Skills Development (RSD) framework, devised by John Willison and Kerry O’Regan at the University of Adelaide, was a workable tool that could guide academics in developing and assessing students’ research skills in content-rich courses from first year undergraduate to PhD levels. Upon a close study of the RSD framework, Working Group 5 recommended that the RSD framework is a suitable model to be adapted and implemented at USP.

The RSD framework is a conceptual tool that draws together six facets of research with varying degrees of student autonomy in the inquiry process (Willison and O’Regan, 2006).
Click here to access the outline of the RSD Framework for USP

Click here to access the detailed version of the RSD framework (Willison and Regan, 2006, 2013).

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