December 22, 2025 – Learning Experientially

When I started my dissertation journey, I wanted to investigate non-mathematics specialist teachers who learned the subject matter as autodidactic learners to acquire the subject matter content knowledge needed to teach the subject area. Whew… that was a mouth-full. In the end, instead of being a qualitative study investigating how these teachers learned mathematics to teach mathematics, my dissertation evolved into a quantitative study using survey methods looking at the professional learning experiences of non-mathematics specialist teachers who are assigned (or choose) to teach secondary mathematics in BC schools.

Why am I bringing this topic up?

I am finding that lots of what we do in education is developed experientially, on-the-job, and autodidatically. According to Google AI Overview: “Autodidactism (or self-education) is the process of learning a subject independently, without formal instruction from teachers or institutions, driven by personal interest and motivation, using self-study, reading, and research to acquire knowledge and skills. An autodidact is the person who engages in this self-taught learning, often displaying strong dedication and the ability to seek out and apply information on their own.” How do people in education develop their expertise?

Looking at this definition, investigating autodidactism for out-of-field teachers in mathematics in K-12 schools would be a viable study. I focused my dissertation on high school mathematics because at the time I was teaching high school mathematics and my topic was inspired by my experiences teaching “Essentials of Mathematics 11” and the who were in that class. My research topic and question were derived from practice and I often wondered where a cycle could be interrupted or broken. The focus of my study was professional learning. And what I learned was, based on the participants of the study, most are self-taught.

So, why am I bringing this topic up?

In my practice, I am recognizing that teaching out-of-field is not uncommon, regardless of discipline, and the most pragmatic approach to learning how to teach the subject matter of a particular topic or area is to learn about it yourself. As a result, most are going to learn the subject matter (or gain experience) by learning-by-doing or essentially self-taught to gain the expertise needed. After teaching one of my graduate leadership courses, leaders in education have to learn how to lead a school experientially and autodidactically. Mentorship is often an alternative, but most this this relationship is informal. Much like me in academia. Transitioning from K-12 education to governance to research has taken some time and I feel that I am learning autodidactically myself as well.

I completed a masters degree in education, but it was more of a professional degree in curriculum and instruction rather than an Masters in Arts with a focus on education, which would have been thesis based and geared more towards academia through graduate research or teacher assistant positions, etc. I was teaching and going to graduate school at the same time. I did not have the foresight of pursuing doctoral work, but the opportunity arose (twice) and I opted to engage in this work in a doctorate in education that involved research, ethics, data collection, data analysis, and a dissertation. I thought my learning curve what there, but what I now realize is, that was the the starting point, not the end.

So what? Why does this matter?

I am having a reflective moment as I think about where I have come from, where I am, and where I am going. Learning autodidatically is a means to an end. I am so motivated by this saying, “You are the CEO of your life.” Lately, this saying is deeply resonating with me in many ways. You have to create what you want to see and in doing so, you are going to engage in some learning to build your expertise in what you are doing. I am definitely learning and I am acutely aware of my sense of self-efficacy to do this work, the confidence needed to jump-in sometimes, and the courage and vulnerability to the produce the work. It’s more than just learning the subject matter, but it entails a lot of self-development too.

I am still building up the courage to put my work out there. I have tried so many other things, but all of those things and opportunities were only mini-tests and trials. I am learning from those experiences and in many ways I am being self-taught. You have to be wiling to make mistakes, ask for help, and look foolish sometimes. Too much of what we think we see is not really the learning that we need to see to move ourselves forward. Learning is messy and I feel that autodidactism also involves grit, perseverance, and JOY. Love what you are doing. Do what you’re doing because you love it. Learn about what you love.

My #OneWord2025 is LOVE. And I feel that I have learned so much from this word and my #OneWord2026 is PRACTICE. I look forward to the new year!!