WASHINGTON — Just days after federal data revealed average reading, math and science scores dropped among certain grades since before the coronavirus pandemic, a U.S. Senate panel on Thursday picked apart the root causes and methods for students’ academic improvement. NAEP, regarded as the gold standard for tracking students’ academic performance, showed that average science scores for eighth-graders decreased by 4 points since before the pandemic, in 2019. Average math and reading scores for 12th-graders also fell 3 points between 2019 and 2024. Results also showed that just one-third of 12th-graders are considered academically prepared for college in math — a drop from 37% in 2019. “Over the past three years, Indiana rebuilt early literacy based on the science of reading,” she said.