“We can clearly see that this isn’t just a pandemic story,” said Matthew Soldner, acting commissioner of the National Center for Education Statistics.

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.