The minister of education of the People's Republic of China is the head of the Ministry of Education of the People's Republic of China and a member of the State Council. Within the State Council, the position is fourth in order of precedence. The minister is responsible for leading the ministry, presiding over its meetings, and signing important documents related to the ministry. Officially, the minister is nominated by the premier of the State Council, who is then approved by the National People's Congress or its Standing Committee and appointed by the president.
The current minister is Huai Jinpeng, who concurrently serves as the Chinese Communist Party Committee Secretary of the ministry.
The Ministry of Education of the Central People's Government was established on 1 October 1949, and Ma Xulun became the first minister on 19 October. The ministry was reorganized to the Ministry of Education of the PRC in September 1954, and the title of the minister was also changed. On 26 July 1968, during the Cultural Revolution, the Central Committee of the Chinese Communist Party, the State Council and the Central Military Commission decided to implement military rule over the ministry; the Director of the Military Control Commission Zhu Kui served as the head of the ministry. On 22 June 1970, the Ministry of Education was abolished and merged into the Science and Education Group of the State Council. On 17 January 1975, the Science and Education Group of the State Council was abolished and the Ministry of Education was re-established. On 18 June 1985, the Ministry of Education was renamed to the State Education Commission, and was named back to the Ministry of Education on 10 March 1993.