If you don't enjoy playing, you don't enjoy playing. What's stopped you from learning what you wanted on your own?
Pedagogy is a big factor and learn something on your own is far from simple and often distressing because most manuals often lack basic pedagogy. I'm not saying that everything can and should be made fun to learn, but being looked down upon and a harsh manner to teach can put people off. Many teachers think that people that don't immediately grasp all the knowledge and information are unworthy to be taught, and that's really a shame.
In my life, I always wanted to learn theremin, but the few people that could have taught me put me off my displaying an atrocious smug and elitism (one even told me that if i didn't
mastered piano and violon, it wasn't even worth trying). I didn't wanted to be the next Beethoven or whatever. I didn't wanted to reinvent the wheel. I just wanted to learn something and see what happens next. Chances are that I may have sucked playing this instrument, but I just wanted to learn something I see if I could do something.
This applies for all domains : I had to wait until this year to be able to learn basic embedded systems design on my own, because at last I found people that did not take a complete knowledge of the subject in 5 sec granted (and books that assume that you have Ph.D in every subject lol).
That's maybe why my first diploma in university was truly a pain in the ass : aside from mathematics professors who were nice, physics and chemistry professors were almost all end-degree jerks who stopped to nothing to diminish their students (that's maybe why only
ONE physics student pursued further studies in physics). This student wasn't me : I chose another way where I could study without being diminished, I gambled a lot by joining an electronics lab (a field where I knew next to nothing when I joined). The people here (as much professors as senior students) were among the nicest I ever met, they helped me (and still help me today) to learn and to be self-confident about my potential and skills.
When I look back to my education (in the terms of school, I can't really manage to say it in english sorry), it seems that the most effort has been put into denying any self confidence to students. Finding a field of work with less toxic superiors (badass people who help you).
All this long story to say that teaching still has a lot to be done, believe in yourself, not what some narrow-minded teacher may say.
This can be extended to workplaces as well : my ex worked in this fast food where managers harassed their employees and encouraged employees to tell on other employees. This stupid, fear-mongering have managed to put the productivity and safety next to zero.
This is what happens that when we let stupid and/or bitter individuals taking charge. Fear-mongering is crap as much in education as in workplace.
I do believe that if we want to learn something, someone, somewhere, is waiting to acknowledge what we're worth. If we are willing to do what's necessary, we don't have to bow down to the people who claim to have the ultimate knowledge.
Anyways, been a bit far from the subject, I don't know if what I wrote does makes any sense in English.
