Abstract
The subject of the study is the question of the relationships of the theory of education to philosophy, science and human conduct. Author argues for the ambiguous methodological grounding of the theory of education and its flexible position in the system of pedagogic disciplines.
The basic integrating link of the text is the conception of the theory of education as the "third link" among a few modifications of the basic contradiction, which lies in the tension between philosophical reflection of the whole and scientific striving for specialisation, and also in the parallel emphasise on the neutrality of the scientific process of acquiring knowledge and educational responsibility for the realisation of a certain ideal. The study tries to show that the theory of education can be understood as a theory of pedagogical antinomies and as a theory of the search for the appropriate ratio between critical reflection and scientific precision in view of the demands of a particular educational situation.