The novel has already illustrated how the Bloomfield and Murray parents have taught their children bad behavior and values—not necessarily explicitly, but through the example of their own behavior. Now Agnes is suggesting that this kind of education doesn’t only occur between parents and children: a person’s friends, acquaintances, and even employers “teach” them how to behave by their example. Agnes is worried about learning the lessons that the superficial Murrays have to teach, so she latches on to Mr. Weston as a better example and “teacher.”