Georgia classrooms are evolving and Lowndes County students are proving they’re ready to rise to the challenge.
Of the 281 Georgia schools honored, Lowndes County is one of the few districts where every elementary school earned the John Hancock Award. Georgias new ELA standards embed the Science of Reading while keeping traditional skills like cursive writing in focus. Watch the video below to see how cursive impacts real-world skills. Lowndes County Schools Shine with Statewide Recognition for Cursive and New ELA Standards
BROADCAST TRANSCRIPT:
Georgia classrooms are evolving, and Lowndes County students are proving they’re ready to rise to the challenge.
I’m Malia Thomas, your Valdosta Neighborhood Reporter and this year’s recognition highlights how new English Language Arts standards are reshaping the way students learn.
State Superintendent Richard Woods stopped by Lowndes County during Constitution Week to honor all seven elementary schools with the John Hancock Award for excellence in cursive writing instruction.
It’s a recognition that underscores Georgia’s new ELA standards, which focus on both traditional literacy skills and 21st-century learning.
According to Woods, just because cursive isn’t tested doesn’t mean it’s any less important.
“Actually, we were introducing some new standards this year, our English language arts standards. Cursive is in there, but we wanted to make sure that, you know, just because it’s not tested, that it is important if it’s in our standards.”
For local leaders like Sandra Wilcher with Lowndes County, the celebration is about more than penmanship it’s about preparing students for success in and beyond the classroom as new standards roll out statewide.
“We want to always make sure that we’re giving our students things that help them be successful beyond the classroom. And certainly your signature is one of those things. You don’t always want to depend on an electronic signature. When you sign a contract, a check, anything that’s put in front of you, you can own that. And students understand the ownership that their signature has.”
As Georgia schools implement the new ELA standards, which embed the Science of Reading, leaders say Lowndes County is showing how traditional skills and modern literacy go hand-in-hand laying a foundation for long-term academic success.
Of the 281 schools to win, Lowndes County schools is one of the few districts to have all elementary schools win the award.
In Valdosta, I’m Malia Thomas, reporting for ABC27.
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