John Andreson speaks with Professor James Tooley, Vice-Chancellor at the University of Buckingham, for an insightful conversation about the role of education in the modern age, the relationship between parental and government oversight in education systems, the differences between public and private education, ideological uniformity in universities and more
. James Tooley is Professor of Educational Entrepreneurship and Policy at one of the UK’s only private universities, the University of Buckingham, where he was also appointed Vice Chancellor in 2020. In his previous role at Newcastle University, Tooley directed the E.G. West Centre which is dedicated to advancing choice, competition, and entrepreneurship in education. In the early 2000s, Tooley took 5 years of unpaid leave to foster entrepreneurial projects in education in developing countries, led by his research on how to provide high quality education for a lower cost. Tooley’s ground breaking research has demonstrated the benefits of low-cost private education, with his work winning numerous prestigious awards and international recognition. James has also written numerous critically-acclaimed books on the topic, including The Beautiful Tree, Reclaiming Education and most recently Really Good Schools: Global Lessons for High Caliber, Low Cost Education.