Professor E.G. West

The E.G. West Centre is named after the late, great, Professor Edwin George West. West considered the role of governments in education and his major work Education and the State, first published in 1965 by the Institute of Economic Affairs is one of the major works on the role of government in education of the twentieth century. His book set off a debate and shift in education policy which challenged the accepted wisdom that a state monopoly was the most efficient and effective way to finance and provide education in the form of schooling. West conducted research on the history of government intervention in education, identifying many of its unintended consequences and hidden costs.  West also examined the role of markets in education and had a profound influence on both academic scholarship and education policy in Britain and abroad. James Tooley's career was influenced substantially by E.G. West, Tooley's own PhD focusing on West's work, and in later years Tooley and West worked closely together on international projects. West also at one time worked in the economics department at Newcastle University before taking up a post at Carlton University in Canada.

James Tooley's book "E.G. West: Economic Liberalism and the Role of Government in Education" published by Continuum. This book is part of a major international reference series providing comprehensive accounts of the work of seminal educational thinkers.