Abstract: Originating in the modern West, the concept of education for the disabled was introduced into China by missionaries and gentlebusinessmen. With the idea of equality and humanity, the missionaries, while spreading religion, promoted the independent development of schools for the disabled and created a modern pattern of assistance for the disabled. From the perspective of social and human rights, the gentlebusinessmen emphasized that the disabled, as members of society, should have the right, guaranteed by law, to receive education. They also encouraged the disabled to achieve proficiency in a particular career to earn their living. In addition, the disabled themselves had to serve society and become selfreliant through the education they received. The concept of education for the disabled developed further through its criticism of society’s contempt for and discrimination against education for the disabled. In the last century, missionaries, gentlebusinessmen and the disabled founded schools for the disabled, educated groups of disabled persons and hence promoted modern education for the disabled, which also laid a solid foundation for the contemporary education for disabled people.