Welcome to the Educational Testing and Assessment Research Center (ETARC)!

ETARC was founded in September 2006 by the Faculty of Education, University of Macau. Its main mission is to conduct measurement and evaluation studies in Macao, the Greater Bay Area, China, and internationally. Since its founding, ETARC has been responsible for the Macao’s participation in PISA (2006, 2009, 2012, 2015, 2018, 2022, 2025), TIMSS (2023, 2027), and PIRLS (2026), and been a founding member of the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Alliance for Educational Quality Monitoring and Evaluation.

Through measurement and evaluation studies, ETARC has been collecting high-quality large-scale data on student learning outcomes, teaching and learning processes and environments, and educational systems to inform decisions of school leaders, local educational authorities, and governments for educational reforms and improvements. ETARC has also been playing an important role in cultivating measurement and evaluation talents for Macao, the Greater Bay Area and Greater China by mentoring graduate students and supporting secondary analysis of large-scale data sets.

As part of the FED’s administrative restructuring, from July 1, 2025, ETARC has expanded to include faculty members in Educational Measurement and Statistics, Educational Administration, as well as other programs. With this expanded faculty involvement, ETARC is well-positioned to be a nexus in educational measurement and evaluation research, teaching, and service for FED, UM, and beyond.

I invite you to explore resources at ETARC and get engaged in various ongoing and future projects!

Xiufeng LIU

Director of Educational Testing and Assessment Research Centre