The extraordinary grassroots revolution of low-cost private schools | James Tooley | TEDxNewcastle

Without numbers, a great many myths about education and educational provision would go unchallenged. Before James started his work (with colleagues) on low-cost private schools, the accepted wisdom was that only government education could provide for the poor in developing countries.

In this TED talk James explores these myths and shares his findings.

Professor Tooley has published widely on the role of government in education. His particular focus is on the phenomenon of low-cost private schools in developing countries.

Prior to joining Newcastle University, Professor Tooley previously taught and researched at the Universities of Oxford and Manchester, England; Simon Fraser University, Canada; and University of the Western Cape, South Africa. His PhD is from the Institute of Education, University of London. His first job was a mathematics high school teacher in Zimbabwe.

His work featured in a American PBS documentary, profiled alongside the work of Nobel Laureate Mohammed Yunus and Grameen Bank. It also featured in a documentary for BBC World and on BBC Newsnight. He has been described in the pages of Philanthropy magazine as “a 21st century Indiana Jones” travelling to “the remotest regions on Earth researching something that many regard as mythical: private, parent-funded schools serving the Third World poor.

This talk was given at a TEDx event using the TED conference format but independently organized by a local community. Learn more at http://ted.com/tedx