Nine-year-olds rebounded to pre-pandemic reading scores and saw some recovery in math, according to data from a test taken regularly in the U.S. since the 1970s

Unscathed by pandemic-era school closures, the nation's 9-year-olds showed progress in math and reading. It's a different story for 13-year-olds, however.

Younger students have regained academic ground lost during the pandemic, but older students' test scores remain stagnant.