Online Learning for Adults
Hiring a private teacher to teach you a subject is an unusual way to learn as an adult, and an old one. It is how aristocrats learned until the industrial era, and it offers something a scheduled course cannot: a completely personalised, completely flexible arrangement, at your time, at your speed, on the topics you actually want.
"I thought that if one could go to the gym to exercise certain body parts, then perhaps there is a gym for the mind."
A Gym for the Mind
The adults we work with say things like "this is a complete game changer" and "I'll never stop learning this way."
What sets it apart from other online learning is that it is live, one to one, and built on dialogue and inquiry rather than delivery. It is also completely customised to you. If you want to shift the focus, revise the plan, or chase a different set of questions halfway through, your teacher adjusts the course. No cohort has to be consulted and no syllabus has to be defended.
That flexibility is the whole point. Most adult learning fails not because the material is hard but because the format assumes you want what everyone else wants, at the pace everyone else moves.
Dialogue. With a Human.
Csaba wanted three things: to learn more about art history and architecture, to learn to sketch, and to build his hand-brain connection.
He hired two teachers through Cicero, personalised the experience completely, and describes it as having changed how he approaches learning altogether. Two teachers, two strands, one person deciding what mattered.
That pattern is common. Adults arrive with a question rather than a curriculum, and the question usually turns out to have more in it than they expected.
How It Works
You pick a topic. Plato, architecture, statistics, the political structures of pre-modern India, ancient Egyptian hieroglyphics. Whatever you have been meaning to get to.
We find you a teacher. Often a college professor, sometimes a working practitioner, always someone with real depth in the subject. They build the course around your interests rather than handing you a fixed syllabus.
You meet once or twice a week, for as long as you want, engaged in dialogue and inquiry rather than lecture and notes.
If you want to shift, we shift. Your teacher adjusts. That is the advantage of a class with one person in it.
What this is not
It is not a recorded course, a cohort, or a credential. There is no certificate at the end and no assessment along the way, because neither would tell you anything you did not already know about whether the learning was worthwhile.
If you want a qualification, this is the wrong product. If you want to actually understand something, with someone who understands it well enough to argue with you about it, this is the right one.
Frequently asked questions about learning as an adult
How much does it cost to hire a private teacher?
It depends on the teacher's field and how often you meet. Most adults meet once or twice a week. We quote after the consultation, once we know the subject and the cadence, so the figure reflects what you actually want rather than a package you have to fit into.
Is there a minimum commitment?
No fixed term. Adults typically start with a run of sessions and continue for as long as it stays useful. Some work with the same teacher for years; some take a focused six weeks on one topic and stop. You can change direction or pause whenever you like.
What subjects can I study?
Almost anything with a serious body of knowledge behind it. Recent examples include Plato, architecture, statistics, the political structures of pre-modern India, and ancient Egyptian hieroglyphics. If we do not already have the right teacher, we will look for one.
Do I get a certificate or credit?
No, and that is intentional. This is learning for its own sake rather than for a credential. Our accreditation with NCA CASI, NWAC and SACS CASI via Cognia covers the school-age programme; adult courses sit outside it and are not credit-bearing, which is what keeps them flexible.
Who are the teachers?
Often college professors, alongside working practitioners in fields like architecture and writing. They are chosen for depth in the subject and for being good at dialogue, which is a different skill from lecturing and matters far more when the class is one person.
This is learning re-imagined. On your terms.
Let's get started. Tell us what you are interested in learning, or book a consultation and we will talk it through.
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