Ministry of Education (China)

The Ministry of Education was one of the first central government departments created. In October 1949, after the founding of the People's Republic of China, the Cultural and Education Committee of the Government Affairs Council and the Ministry of Education of the Central People's Government were established. In November 1952, the Ministry of Higher Education of the Central People's Government, the Sports Committee of the Central People's Government, and the Illiteracy Eradication Working Committee of the Central People's Government were added. In 1954, the Ministry of Education was reorganized and the responsibilities of the Illiteracy Elimination Committee were merged into the Ministry of Education. In February 1958, the Ministry of Higher Education was merged into the Ministry of Education. In July 1964, the Ministry of Higher Education was restored. In July 1966, the Ministry of Higher Education was once again merged into the Ministry of Education.[4][5]

In June 1970, the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China decided to abolish the Ministry of Education and establish the Science and Education Group of the State Council. In January 1975, the Fourth National People's Congress decided to restore the Ministry of Education. On June 18, 1985, the Eleventh Standing Committee of the Sixth National People's Congress decided to abolish the Ministry of Education and establish the National Education Commission of the People's Republic of China. In 1998, the Decision on Institutional Reform of the State Council was adopted at the First Session of the Ninth National People's Congress, and the National Education Commission was renamed the Ministry of Education.[4][5]

According to the "Regulations on the Functional Configuration, Internal Organizations and Staffing of the Ministry of Education" of 2008, the Ministry of Education assumes the following responsibilities:[6]

1. Formulate guidelines, policies and plans for education reform and development, draft relevant laws and regulations and supervise their implementation.
2. Responsible for the overall planning and coordinated management of all types of education at all levels, working with relevant departments to formulate standards for the establishment of schools at all levels and types, guiding the education and teaching reform of all types of schools at all levels, and responsible for the statistics, analysis and release of basic education information.
3. Responsible for promoting the balanced development of compulsory education and promoting educational equity, responsible for the macro guidance and coordination of compulsory education, and guiding general high school education, early childhood education and special education. Formulate basic education teaching requirements and basic teaching documents, organize the review and approval of basic education national curriculum materials, and fully implement quality education.
4. Guide the national education supervision work, be responsible for organizing and guiding the supervision, inspection, evaluation and acceptance of secondary and lower secondary education and the eradication of illiteracy among young adults, and guide the monitoring of the development level and quality of basic education.
5. Guide the development and reform of employment-oriented vocational education, formulate secondary vocational education professional catalogs, teaching guidance documents and teaching evaluation standards, and guide the construction of secondary vocational education teaching materials and career guidance.
6. Guide the development and reform of higher education and assume the responsibility of deepening the reform of the management system of directly affiliated universities. Develop higher education discipline catalogs and teaching guidance documents, review the establishment, renaming, cancellation and adjustment of higher education institutions together with relevant departments, be responsible for the implementation and coordination of the "Project 211" and "Project 985", and coordinate and guide all types of higher education and continuing education , to guide the improvement of higher education evaluation work.
7. Responsible for the overall management of the department’s education funds, participating in the formulation of policies for education fund raising, education appropriation, and education infrastructure investment, and responsible for statistics on national education funding investment.
8. Coordinate and guide the education work of ethnic minorities, and coordinate educational assistance to ethnic minorities and ethnic minority areas.
9. Guide the ideological and political work, moral education work, physical health and art education work, and national defense education work in all types of schools at all levels, and guide the party building and stabilization work in colleges and universities.
10. Be in charge of the work of teachers nationwide, work with relevant departments to formulate qualification standards for teachers at all levels and guide their implementation, and guide the construction of talent teams in the education system.
11. Responsible for various types of higher education admissions examinations and student status and academic qualification management, work with relevant departments to formulate higher education enrollment plans, participate in the formulation of employment policies for graduates of ordinary colleges and universities, and guide ordinary colleges and universities to carry out employment and entrepreneurship for college students.
12. Plan and guide the natural sciences, philosophy, and social science research of colleges and universities, coordinate and guide colleges and universities to participate in the construction of the national innovation system and undertake the implementation of various science and technology plans such as major national science and technology projects, and guide the science and technology innovation platforms of colleges and universities The development and construction of education informatization and the integration of industry, academia and research will be guided.
13. Organize and guide international exchanges and cooperation in education, formulate policies for studying abroad, studying in China, Sino-foreign cooperative education and school management for foreigners’ children, plan, coordinate and guide the international promotion of Chinese, and carry out cooperation with Hong Kong, Macao and Taiwan educational cooperation and exchange.
14. Formulate guidelines and policies for national language and writing work, formulate medium- and long-term plans for language and writing work, formulate norms and standards for Chinese and minority languages and writing, organize and coordinate supervision and inspections, and guide and promote Putonghua work and Putonghua teacher training.
15. Responsible for the national degree awarding work, the implementation of the national degree system, and the international degree equivalence and mutual recognition of degrees.
16. Responsible for coordinating relevant Chinese departments to carry out international cooperation with UNESCO in the fields of education, science and technology, culture and other fields, and responsible for liaison work with the UNESCO Secretariat and related institutions and organizations.
17. Undertake other matters assigned by the State Council.

According to the "Regulations on the Functional Configuration, Internal Organizations and Staffing of the Ministry of Education", the Ministry of Education has set up the following institutions:

• Education in China
• History of education in China
• List of universities in China
• English Medium Medical Schools
• Guozijian

• Official website