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Veteran teacher Wendy Taylor
tries to like the new assistant principal because
it’s the right thing to do.
 Plus, he holds her career in his hands, which he knows.
He's made it clear that the key to success in getting a  good review 
is to kowtow to his every whim. But those whims
seem to change every time he pokes his head into her classroom.
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Wendy wonders why the joyful days of working earnestly with kids and helping them realize their potential have been replaced by endless documentation  and subjective reviews that form the majority of a performance-based evaluation.
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On the plus side, Wendy Taylor may possibly be the only fictional character ever to start her own online magazine.
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The incredible spin put on data collection:
what does
it really mean? 
And does a kid learn just because a teacher places a tick mark on a grid?

A good teacher can inspire hope, ignite the imagination, and instill a love of learning.

Until the bureaucrats get involved.

Quick Links:

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About our heroine, Wendy Taylor:

Book Reviews

So well written, I felt  like I was in the classroom
with Wendy.
                             -Ms. Zempel's cousin 
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Too much emphasis on my mom's snarky inner voice.
-Wendy's teenage daughter, Cassidy 
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T.L. Zempel on her character Wendy Taylor:

Pencil

Finishing School tells the story of how teachers, students, and administrators play the learning game.

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Trouble is, they didn't all get the same

play book:

  • Administrators want to impress the public with strong test scores;

  • Students don't care much about that, involved as they are in their own mini-dramas and smart devices. 

  • Teachers are caught in the middle of a game they never signed up for: juggling the malaise in their students with the impossible demands of their bosses. 

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And then a new threat emerges, one that affects every teacher's ability to do their job.

 

Wendy Taylor tries to play nice

but never imagined she'd be in a fight

for her very career over it.

If the new assistant principal has anything to say about it, she just might not

make it to Christmas.

With the help of her colleagues,

she hatches a plan to thwart his intentions

and save her job. 

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What she discovers in the process

upends her life anyway.

About T.L. Zempel

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