KEVIN FREKING, Associated Press

WASHINGTON (AP) — President Barack Obama says changes made to demand more from teachers and students are paying off as high school graduation rates have reached a record high of 83.2 percent.

On Monday, Obama spoke at Benjamin Banneker Academic High School in Washington, D.C., where graduation rates jumped the highest in the country for the 2014-2015 school year.

Obama told students they can accomplish whatever they want in their lives, but he’s also emphasizing that a high school education isn’t enough. He says the students are going to have to find jobs in a global economy and that they will be competing against students from China and India for jobs.

The increasing graduation rates, however, come against a backdrop of decreasing test scores for students on national math and reading tests.