Putting Prose on Pause

This week (or rather, last week), we were asked to write a poem about our topic. I am no poet, but I hope that this piece conveys some of the realities that students in low-income school districts experience and want to express. 

*Disclaimer: This poem is not written from my perspective. It is written from the viewpoint of students who experience education inequality. 

hallways

packed with students, rushing to class

(or not)

classrooms

filled with brightly colored posters

and the smell of whiteboard markers

teachers

the ones we take for granted now

but will want to thank later

doodles

cover the desks in the back row

documenting the fleeting thoughts of teenage girls

When will you realize?

We have hallways, classrooms, teachers and doodles

But our hallways are dirty

the floors haven't been washed in years

the linoleum is badly cracked

our classrooms are poorly lit

and don't have enough desks to seat our whole class

some kids sit on the floor

our teachers want to teach us

but instead they test us

and then hang their heads in disappointment when we don't do well

our doodles aren't about sports or fashion

they are about the places we work after school

when we should be doing homework or playing ball

my parents tell me "stay in school", "school is important"

how do I reply?

as long as my hallways and classrooms and teachers and doodles

are the way they are

I am better off

anywhere but school.