By Mark Wozniak
Albany, NY – Fourth graders in New York State last year continued a trend of academic improvement in math. But eighth graders still showed an uneven record of performance, especially in the state's five large city school districts.
Only 24 percent of Buffalo eighth graders showed proficiency in math in the city, a decline from 33 percent the previous year. In Erie County, the level was 72 percent.
Among fourth graders in Buffalo, the passing rate was 67 percent, compared to 93 percent in the rest of the county.
State Education Commissioner Richard Mills says the Buffalo figures indicate " serious decline."