Why was your curriculum not coordinated with the tests? Serious question, since you are experienced in the process.
The test at the time tested basic skills in math, reading, and writing. When students reached high school, these skills should have already been taught, per the curriculum. It had nothing to do with the test not being coordinated with the curriculum. Test scores = funding. So the test became our focus. Until the students took the test, we lived and breathed the test. I don’t know what the schools do now. I haven’t been in the classroom for 14 years.