Sorry for late reply.
I went straight into projects, albeit small ones (a monitoring system for temperature, humidity, luminosity, my own light-based alarm clock). It's not quite as trivial as it sounds, for someone who has never touched electronics before :)
The theory I learned was almost all just internet searches. I did research before ordering each piece of hardware, to the point where I was confident enough I won't fry anything.
This might not be the most efficient way of learning, but it's more enjoyable than a book for me.
Embedded systems and electrical engineering. I knew close to nothing in either field and it is refreshing to learn a new field starting at the basics. Creating a practical, physical product is also very rewarding.
Aside from the many issues already pointed out, I think using office as punishment is a certain way to get everyone to hate it even more, and kill the mood in the office. There would really be no benefit for anyone to come to the office at all.