Popular education, by which is meant adult education within and in support of radical social movements, has become a major topic in academic adult education in recent times. This paper criticises the lack of attention paid in most of this writing to the history, theory and practice of revolutionary parties in the communist and socialist tradition. Through an exploration of the concept of the "party line", it is argued that this neglect has led to a one-sided view of the relationship between education and action, a view which must be overcome for popular education to become an effective force for socialist transformation.