Brad Cartwright

An Authentic Rant…

May 16, 2025

First of all, let me just say that this is meant to be serious and lighthearted. 

Second, this goes out to my dear friend who’s out there in this beautiful world, still teaching and making lives better every day. Jordan, for all the times you provoked me, made me laugh, and especially for all the times you purposely dropped this word into our department meetings just to get me going, this is for you.

Ok, I’ll come clean.

I hate the word “authentic.”

How many times have you heard the phrase, “Authentic learning experience”?

A thousand? Two?

I am positive you've even been told that you must create them, as well.

What does that even mean?

I guess it means to stop doing the inauthentic learning experiences, right?

But then I think…

What on earth is that—an inauthentic learning experience?

Seriously.

Because, logically, the only reason you’d need to say "authentic learning experience" is if there’s such a thing as an “inauthentic learning experience”, right?

Otherwise...it’s just a “learning experience”.

Look, the word authentic basically means real or genuine. 

If that is true (which it is), then inauthentic must mean fake or disingenuous.

Which makes me think, what is a fake or disingenuous learning experience?

I’ve spent the last ten years thinking about this (and quietly stewing about it) and searching desperately for an example of a truly inauthentic learning experience so they can be right.

Because I don’t want to be a contrarian, not really, but words matter. A lot.

So here is what I’ve come up with…

Nothing. 

Every learning experience that I can think of—from childhood, from my schooling, from my teaching, from my parenting, from my traveling, from every part of my life—has been completely authentic. Meaning I actually learned something.

Ok, so then I thought, well, maybe by “an authentic learning experience” they mean that the learning experience is positive, as opposed to negative. 

If that is true, then holy moly…

I think some of my most powerful learning experiences may actually be the negative ones. 

For example… 

In 7th grade at Bay Middle School in Bay Village, Ohio, I got 100 detentions in one year. Yes, you read that right. I got 100 detentions in 182 days of school. (I might have talked a bit in class.)

Authentic or inauthentic learning experience? Authentic. 

My first year of teaching at the Atlanta Girls’ School in Atlanta, Georgia, I told a student to sit in the hallway for talking too much…and then forgot she was out there and went to lunch. (I cringe writing about that.)

Authentic or inauthentic learning experience? Authentic. Horrifyingly so. 

And what about all the predicted grades I missed? Authentic.

What about all the lessons that flopped? Authentic.

What about the worst teachers I had growing up? Authentic.

What about worst decisions I made as a young parent. Authentic.

All authentic.

All real. 

All genuine.

All learning experiences. 

Where are the inauthentic ones? 

There aren't any. 

Because learning—real learning—doesn’t only happen when things go right.

It happens when things are hard, when things fail, when things are uncomfortable.

And real learning also happens when we are successful and rewarded.

So, then I thought, what are people actually trying to say when they say “authentic learning experiences”? 

I mean, they mean something.

I think what they are saying is that I need to create lessons that are:

• A positive experience for students.
• An empowering experience for students.
• A thought-provoking experience for students.
• An experience that makes students feel seen, heard, and important.

And if that's what they mean, then yes!

I'm all in.

But can’t we just call it that?

A captivating lesson, an empowering lesson, an inspiring lesson, a content-driving lesson, a skills-based lesson. 

Or

A human, hopeful, challenging, joyful, or positive learning experience.

That.

Because if not….

And here’s the punchline….

Aren’t we being inauthentic with our words? 

Words matter and we need to use them wisely. Especially in education.

Thanks for reading.

I feel much better now.

And Jordan—wherever you are—thanks for all the laughs and lessons and authentically good times.

See you next week,

Brad