Theoretical knowledge in Pedagogy has been particularly discredited by contemporary epistemological trends that generally question the possibility of achieving rigorous and universal knowledge in the social and human sciences (Braidotti, 2013), fostering a certain anti-intellectualism around education (Nosonovsky, 2021; Pérez, 2023). Particularly striking, for example, in the Spanish context, are the positions of critics against what they call pedagogism, as they argue not only for the impossibility of pedagogical knowledge but also for the harmfulness of attempting to establish firm theoretical and practical foundations, or normative principles, in human education (Massó, 2021; Royo, 2016, 2022, 2023).

This paper critically analyzes this phenomenon by identifying three interconnected manifestations of pedagogical anti-intellectualism according to Motta (2018), anti-intellectualism manifests through: (i) Anti-rationalism, it means a rejection of Enlightenment-style, rationalist, and universalist thinking; (ii) Unreflective instrumentalism, where practical utility and immediate solutions are prioritized without considering long-term consequences; and (iii) Anti-elitism, which refers to a distrust of those who possess greater knowledge and expertise on a subject. These tendencies, we argue, do not merely reflect epistemological pluralism or contextual sensitivity, but frequently operate through a systematic marginalization of theory and critical thought in education. The aim of this paper is not to oppose pluralism -epistemological pluralism is not inherently anti-intellectual- but to problematize the point at which pluralism turns into relativism, and where justified critiques of universalism are replaced by an outright suspicion of theory and expertise. Within pedagogical anti-rationalism, we analyze the idea that pedagogical epistemology should be primarily narrative and context-bound, making theoretical generalizations suspect (Carr, 2006). This leads to what Massó (2021) calls anti-Enlightenment pedagogies, which reframe knowledge not as objective or cumulative, but as dependent on local narratives and lived experience. The current emphasis in Pedagogy on postcolonial literature (Liddy, 2021; Collins, 2021; Samier, 2021), southern epistemologies (Giri, 2021), and post-truth (Compton et al., 2021; Lynch, 2021) aligns with this perspective, raising the question: Can pedagogy maintain its critical and normative function without some degree of epistemic ambition?

The second manifestation,unreflective instrumentalism, emerges from the increasing alignment between education and the logic of the market. Pedagogical goals are redefined in terms of labor market needs, reducing education to an economic function (Park, 2021; Säfström & Mansson, 2022). Here, theoretical reflection is seen as a luxury or even an obstacle to the system’s efficiency. We argue that this reduction impoverishes education’s humanistic and emancipatory potential, eroding the capacity to imagine alternatives.

Finally, the paper examines anti-elitism not as a call for democratic participation, but a suspicion of intellectual authority, where the pursuit of excellence -especially through transmission of knowledge- is seen as inherently exclusionary. This has led to responses aligned with model minority authoritarianism (Littler, 2025), materializing in practices such as those seen at Michaela Community School in the UK. While the democratization of education is vital, we suggest that eliminating standards of expertise in the name of equality risks undermining education’s critical capacity.

By engaging with philosophical debates on knowledge, normativity, and the role of theory, this paper argues for a renewed space for theoretical reflection in education -one that resists both foundationalist universalism and anti-theoretical relativism.

Education is shaped by value orientations (Gil Cantero & Reyero, 2015). Therefore, when we introduce a discipline that addresses the phenomenon in its entirety, we are considering it from its most fundamental and comprehensive purposes. In the case of education, this means understanding the phenomenon in parallel with the goals of human development. This study follows the methods of the Philosophy of Education, which should not only determine the truth but also serve as guidelines for addressing specific questions related to the subject of research (Heyting, 2001). The main objective of this research is to delve into the causes of the crisis in pedagogical knowledge that generates the current disagreements in the epistemological foundations of education. We posed a series of questions, such as: Why is trust in pedagogical knowledge declining? What impact are anti-intellectual movements having on Pedagogy? Following these disciplines and in line with the objectives of my research, a hermeneutic heuristic and literature review has been carried out. That is, through reading and reviewing the literature, an interpretation of the texts has been conducted. Throughout this work, the goal has not been merely to compile and reproduce the ideas of other authors in a college-like manner, but rather to present them in an organized and thematically structured way, incorporating interpretation and critical reflection through new emerging questions. This process, which involves the art of interpretation (Hovey et al., 2022), requires detailed reading and writing. In that act, two aspects converge: on one hand, the essential prior knowledge of the work's subject that the performer must interpret, and on the other, the necessary relevance of both the work and the performer within a broader context.

The controversy between theory and practice, as we have seen, gradually leads to a tendency toward anti-intellectualism, which may ultimately distance us from the essential reflective capacity required by any educational practice. It is important to recognize that educational practice and its theoretical knowledge are not merely descriptive facts, like knowing the components of a cell nucleus, which remain unchanged regardless of our reflective capacity. On the contrary, education creates practical situations that demand continuous intellectual engagement—both comprehensive and critical—to enhance not only the operational execution of educational initiatives but also the theoretical frameworks that explain current practices and, more importantly, those that may emerge from new and different practices. Within pedagogical anti-intellectualism, we have identified three key tendencies: anti-rationalism, unreflective instrumentalism, and anti-elitism, showing how these trends undermine the theoretical foundations of pedagogy by promoting an anti-Enlightenment, utilitarian, and partisan vision of education. While criticism of pedagogism in Spain rightly points out excessive theoretical abstraction, often rooted more in idealistic visions than in real-world concerns, dismissing theory altogether risks fostering a dangerous reliance on immediate solutions—characteristic of unreflective instrumentalism. This, in turn, can leave education in the hands of technology-driven market forces that operate solely from an impoverishing utilitarian perspective. At the same time, we recognize the legitimacy of epistemological pluralism and context-sensitivity. The intention here is not to defend a return to rigid, universalist pedagogies, but to reclaim theory as a necessary tool for critical reflection, capable of navigating complexity without collapsing into relativism or utilitarianism. Ultimately, we advocate for a philosophical approach to pedagogy that embraces uncertainty without abandoning the pursuit of meaning and coherence. In doing so, education can resist both technocratic reduction and theoretical paralysis, reaffirming its role as a site of intellectual and ethical formation.

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