The purposes of this study were to investigate the impact of the following factors on the decline of average SAT scores between 1952 and 1981: (1) changes in composition of population of the SAT takers after 1963, (2) aggregate technological and social changes related to the scores in the years following 1970, and (3) selected economic factors in the period 1952 through 1981. Two models were used to test the hypotheses of this study. The dependent variables of each model were the SAT Verbal and Math scores. The independent variables of the study were two intervention variables that represented changes following 1963 and after 1970. Also, three economic variables were subjected to principal component analysis. These were changes in unemployment, Consumer Price Index (CPI), and real Gross National Product (GNP). The results were two factors: (1) Economic Instability (combination of unemployment and CPI), and (2) Economic Growth. These two factors were used as independent variables in addition to the interventions of 1963 and 1970. The interaction of these variables were calculated. The Box-Jenkins technique was used to generate residuals which were white noise (free from the confounding of autoregression, moving average, and trend or stochastic drift). Finally, hierarchical multilinear regression technique was used to analyze the white noise data of the study.

Cognitive-attentional test anxiety theory posits that test-anxious individuals direct attention internally, thus interfering with task-relevant information processing. Nevertheless, working-memory deficits are often obscured by compensatory exertion of increased effort by anxious subjects on cognitive tasks. Failure to identify anxietyspecific performance decrements has led some authors to replace the test anxiety construct with one emphasizing skill deficiencies. This investigation examined whether information-processing deficits are inherent sequelae of test anxiety or merely reflect lowered exam-taking ability in test-anxious persons.

Until the developments in computer technology, linear test administrations within classical test theory framework is mostly used in testing practices. These tests contain a set of predefined items in a large range of difficulty values for collecting information from students at various ability levels. However, placing very easy and very difficult items in the same test not only cause wasting time and effort but also introduces possible extraneous variables into the measurement process such as possibility of guessing, chance of careless errors induced by boredom or frustration. Instead of administering a linear test there is another option that adapts the difficulty of test according to the ability level of examinees which is named as computerized adaptive test. Computerized adaptive tests use item response theory as a measurement framework and have algorithms responsible for item selection, ability estimation, starting rule and test termination. The present study aims to determine the applicability of computerized adaptive testing (CAT) to Turkish Pupil Monitoring System&rsquo / s (PMS) mathematics assessments. Therefore, live CAT study using only multiple choice items is designed to investigate whether to obtain comparable ability estimations. Afterwards, a Monte Carlo simulation study and a Post-hoc simulation study are designed to determine the optimum CAT algorithm for Turkish PMS mathematics assessments. In the simulation studies, both multiple-choice and open-ended items are used and different scenarios are tested regarding various starting rules, termination criterion, ability estimation methods and existence of exposure/content controls. The results of the study indicate that using Weighted Maximum Likelihood (WML) ability estimation method, easy initial item difficulty as starting rule and a fixed test reliability termination criterion (0.30 standard error as termination rule) gives the optimum CAT algorithm for Turkish PMS mathematics assessment. Additionally, item exposure and content control strategies have a positive impact on providing comparable ability estimations.