Abstract：Abstract: The president study explored instructional effect of Research-based Collaborative Project Writing (RBCPW) within EAP curriculum, through a Classroom Environment Perception(CEP) approach. A 16-week RBCPW course was administered to 302 second-year students in 6 EAP classes. A cluster analysis of self-developed CEP survey results identified 3 perception patterns i.e. Negative Type I (low relevancy-high difficulty-low suitability-low peer support), Medium-Positive Type II (medium relevancy-medium difficulty-low suitability-low peer support)、High-Positive Type III(high relevancy-low difficulty-high suitability-high peer support). Regression analysis also suggested difficulty perception, suitability perception and support perception as direct or indirect predictors for instructional effect in terms of student engagement, individual test performance, future task confidence. The final conclusion is that the match between subject learning needs, English proficiency level and RBCPW course requirements is key to positive CEP, which calls for further reflections for promoting project-based EAP writing courses among undergraduates
Key words: classroom environment perception (CEP); instructional effect; research-based collaborative project writing (RBCPW); EAP
