This article argues for the problematic dominance of education research striving for relevance forpolicy and practice, with little to no consideration of its contribution to shared internal disciplinarydiscourse. Drawing on non-affirmative education theory, we use empirical examples fromthe Swedish context to contend that such a one-sided focus on external relevance may lead to arelevance paradox in which education research becomes increasingly irrelevant while striving forrelevance. Two issues are discussed in relation to this development. First, such a discourse on educationresearch runs the risk of becoming undisciplined in the sense that it becomes detached fromthe shared disciplinary language, with little to no connection to fundamental education theory. Second,education research runs the risk of becoming uncritical. In closing the gap between practice/policy and research, education researchers jeopardise their critical distance and become subordinatedto practitioners and policymakers in an unequal and uncritical relationship. Finally, we arguefor a more dynamic and reflexive understanding of the relevance of education research, where thereflexive relationship between policy/practice and fundamental education theory research is understoodas the thing that makes it possible for disciplinary discourse to thrive.