Self Taught---Autodidact?

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Have any of y'all had problems learning in a "traditional" environment, but pursued a course of self-education?
I read somewhere that many Aspies have problems picking up information in school settings, for technical or social ("bullying?") reasons.

But I have noticed a freakish amount of knowledge pouring from the mouths of Aspies on these boards. How did you get the info?

School was largely a waste of time for me, I could never follow the teachers and had a hard time with subjects like math and foreign languages. After I quit college, though, I found that I still had a thirst for ideas and stuff. I became a voracious reader and began getting involved in Trivia events.

I think I can pass for an educated person now, although I am sure that there are yuuuge gaps in my knowledge. Which I hope to address.

What about you guys? Did you have to educate yourselves?

I've learnt an awful lot on my own mainly by taking things apart to try and understand them. I have shocked a few people by taking something apart and correcting it when they'd spent hours trying.

PC repair; again by messing around with them and learning that way.

Using a lathe and milling machine; partly self taught because I did engineering a college but didn't pass because some of the tutors couldn't teach.

I've learnt an awful lot on my own mainly by taking things apart to try and understand them...

There are definitely (at least) two different kinds of Aspie Brain. Taking something apart, I can grok.
Understanding it afterwards---or putting it back together...not so much.

I had a good formal education - a decent Direct Grant Grammar School followed by one of our top universities. Nonetheless, I found it harder and harder to study in a disciplined manner after about the age of 15, and had particular difficulties with the whole business of writing essays: just couldn't concentrate or apply myself to the task, probably some sort of 'executive functioning' issue. That situation got so bad at university that I was lucky not to have been kicked out - if I'd been at a less 'liberal' college I probably would have been.

In later life I've become a bit of an autodidact in computing. Six years ago I'd never owned a PC, but now have 27 of them, and know a fair bit about Windows and Linux, and the workings of the machines themselves.

[i]...had particular difficulties with the whole business of writing essays: just couldn't concentrate or apply myself to the task, probably some sort of 'executive functioning' issue...[/i]

I could never write an effective essay or long research paper. Something about organizing the masses of information into useful categories defeated me.

That situation got so bad at university that I was lucky not to have been kicked out...

Yeah, I was bright enough to float from grade to grade and through three years of college, but my grades weren't great and I wasn't learning much. Lectures tended to run through me like coffee (yech), and reading long texts was impossible back then.

I have a good education and did well in Uni, but I also learned a lot by myself because I'm curious and always interested in something new and I couldn't spend my whole life in school

Still, I prefer an informal/unconventional learning environment.

The expansion of the internet has been heaven for the perpetual learner: not only you have all kind of tutorials, classes and learning software online, but it can take you 5 min flat to find out what you need to start and download the information/material.

I was mostly an autodidact until high school—that’s when I started listening to others other than myself.

I have an MA but unfortunately our education system becomes particularly narrow - even for an aspie - the further up you get!

So a lot of my knowledge is autodidact. As I enjoy learning anything humanities based. I read a lot and watch a lot of 'educational' type videos on Youtube.

Being an autodidact has allowed me to learn science too. Science and maths were based on things like graphs and equipment/experiment when I was at school which wasn't great for me as I'm dyspraxic. Knocked my confidence when I did so badly & failed my exams but as an adult I'm prepared to learn some of it if it's provided through reading/video/radio information.

I didn’t know you have an MA!

All is have is a BA.