According to the preamble of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, every individual and every organ of society "shall strive by teaching and education to promote respect for these rights and freedoms and by progressive measures, national and international, to secure their universal and effective recognition and observance, both among the peoples of Member States themselves and among the peoples of territories under their jurisdiction."

The declaration stated in Article 26 that "education shall be directed to the full development of the human personality and to the strengthening of respect for human rights and fundamental freedoms."

Later, in the World Program for Human Rights Education, the United Nations defined human rights education as any learning, education, training and information efforts aimed at building a universal culture of human rights, including: (a) the strengthening of respect for human rights and fundamental freedoms; (b) the full development of the human personality and the sense of its dignity; (c) the promotion of understanding, tolerance, gender equality and friendship among all nations, indigenous peoples and minorities; (d) the enabling of all persons to participate effectively in a free and democratic society governed by the rule of law; (e) the building and maintenance of peace; (f) the promotion of people-centered sustainable development and social justice.

On June 11, 2012, the Information Office of the State Council of China released the National Human Rights Action Plan of China (2012-2015), approved by the State Council. This is the second guideline and plan for human rights from the Chinese government. Its fourth part is about human rights education, stating "China will carry out extensive human rights education and training in various forms, and promote human rights awareness and publicize human rights knowledge throughout Chinese society."

As for the approaches, the plan stated that "China will include human rights education in the training programs of civil servants to strengthen human rights education and training for civil servants. The state supports human rights research institutes in their efforts to develop teaching materials for training in human rights and participate in the training work.

"China will strengthen human rights education in primary and middle schools. The state will make sure that human rights knowledge is integrated into relevant courses and included in the legal education curriculum. It will also carry out human rights promotional activities that suit juveniles, promote school management by law and democratic administration, and create an education environment that honors human rights.

"China will encourage institutions of higher learning to offer public courses and specialized courses on human rights, support the development of related disciplines and majors, and encourage studies on human rights theories.

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