Educational administration in China

The National People’s Congress (NPC) is the supreme state power of the People's Republic of China which has the final authority over all other state organs. The main functions and powers of the NPC include formulation of laws, delegating authority, policy formulation, and supervision of other governing organs. For example, the NPC has the right to enact and amend the constitution of the People's Republic of China; to elect the president and vice-president of the People's Republic of China; to appoint and approve premier, vice-premiers, State councilors, ministers in charge of ministries and commissions; the right to examine and approve government reports; to examine and approve the plan for national economic and social development and reports on its implementation; to examine and approve the State budget and reports on its implementation; to approve the establishment of provinces, autonomous region s and municipalities directly under the Central Government; to decide on the establishment of special administrative regions and the systems to be instituted within these regions; and to declare war and sign treaties of peace. Under the current Constitution and related laws, the NPC holds a session on the first quarter of each year, convened by its Standing Committee. A single term of a NPC deputy is five years (People's Daily Online, 2006a).

The State Council of the People's Republic of China is the highest executive organ of state power, as well as the highest organ of state administration. Under the current Constitution, the State Council exercises the power of administrative legislation, the power to submit proposals, the power of administrative leadership, the power of economic management, the power of diplomatic administration, the power of social administration, and other powers granted by the NPC and its Standing Committee. The State Council is responsible for carrying out the principles and policies of the Communist Party of China as well as the regulations and laws adopted by the NPC, and dealing with such affairs as China's internal politics, diplomacy, national defense, finance, economy, culture and education (People's Daily Online, 2006b).

The Ministry of Education is a central government agency under the State Council, responsible for China’s educational undertakings and language work. The main responsibilities of the MOE include: the establishment of the guiding principles and policies for China’s educational development and the drafting of relevant rules and regulations; the management of educational finance; the investigation and promotion of the curriculum standards, teaching requirements and unified teaching materials for primary and secondary education; the direction and evaluation of pedagogical reforms; the implementation of 9-year compulsory education; the eradication of illiteracy; the management and reform of higher education; the planning and direction of the educational work and assistance for minority nationalities; the construction of Communist Party Committee in institutions of higher learning and the work of ideology and politics education, moral, physical, health, arts, and national defense education in schools of different levels; the administration of teachers' work, and the development of teacher quality; planning and management of student recruitment at all levels; the planning and direction of research in the natural and social sciences; the management and coordination of international cooperation and exchange; the collection, analysis and the popularization and testing of Mandarin; the planning for the conferral of academic degrees; as a liaison with UNESCO; and all other work assigned by the State Council (Functions of the Ministry of Education, 2006).
All other levels of government at the county level and above are responsible for matters of education in their respective jurisdictions and are to report to the People’s Congress at that respective level on all the education work, supervision and educational finance (see Chen & Liu, 2002).