Students in Rochester and across the state are doing better when it comes to math.  Overall, the Rochester City School District saw significant gains. The percentage of students meeting math standards is 63%, up 8% from last year.

The news isn't all good. There are some schools that actually saw decreases in the percentage of students that passed.

At School #36, 51% of the students passed. That's down 15% from last year.  School #16 and Jefferson High School also had some losses. The percentage of students passing is down 8% at both schools.

Superintendent Jean-Claude Brizard was celebrating student achievements at Dr. Freddie Thomas High School today, but he also acknowledged that more work needs to be done. He says he's essentially doing an "autopsy" of schools that are falling behind, and he's working with principals at those schools to make improvements.

"If those kids made gains from year to year, then perhaps it's not the school.  Perhaps the kids came in a lower level," said Brizard.  "You look at what the practices have been, who's teaching and the leadership, so it's sort of an unpacking, and that will drive our agenda for the summer and next year."

At Freddie Thomas, the principal has paired math and English teachers in the same classroom. Brizard says it's a model that works.  Ultimately, it will be up to the principal of each school on how to best use people, time and money to improve test scores.