"A household residing in North London seeks an remarkable and qualified instructor to guide their most junior child on his first steps to growing into an English gentleman."
Upon seeing this listing, you might naturally miss the phrase "initial stages" as mere an expression.
However, it may be the most important part of this unique job advert, as it aims to recruit a tutor for a one-year-old.
Many of responses have already been received since the unidentified family posted their search for the highly paid tutor, who has to be "someone very special".
During the past few weeks, the post has attracted attention throughout the media, with many asking why?
Progressive Approach
A tutoring expert, CEO and founder of a global tutoring firm, which is supporting the family in their hunt, explained that despite first doubt, he found the idea "visionary", and "progressive".
When he consulted the family, he mentioned they recognized the unconventional aspect of their requirement, and how early in age their son is.
Nevertheless, they clarified that they "preferred not to postpone any longer" to get a tutor, as they had held off until their older child was five, and by that age "cultural bias had already become established".
But what does the family indicate by "cultural predisposition"?
It's "everything", Adam answered. "The manner you eat, how you speak".
He explained the older sibling had absorbed "really subtle, unspoken signals" from the family, and had taken on their cultural norms. The family informed the consultant they did not want history to happen again with their younger child.
The intention: To engage a British tutor, who needs to speak with RP, to influence the baby right from the beginning.
Osmotic Learning
"Much of the development at the outset here is rather absorbed naturally," stated the expert.
It's via this subtle influence that the family are aiming the child will acquire the English characteristics they wish to instil.
Adam explained the tutor had to be somebody who went to "the appropriate educational institutions – comparable categories of schools as the family aspire to send their son to".
"The instructor just has to be the appropriate candidate, they'll be performing things they aren't even aware they're doing, simply by nature," he said.
Cost Not Relevant
The family told him the chosen tutor should ideally also have familiarity of or enthusiasm in horse riding, winter sports, the arts and musical activities so as to shape the child in a wide range of passions.
More than that though, he explained the family desired the tutor to enrol the child on a variety of classes so the child would be "horseback riding and learning an musical instrument by the time they are about three years old".
In the family's view, assisting their son develop into a "English gentleman" will result in accomplishment and open doors.
"Taking into account the rights and wrongs of that, because it's certainly a social class indicator," he notes.
But, in spite of all this guidance in "UK identity", would the child absorb what is termed cultural influence from the multicultural family he resides with anyway?
"Yes", replied the CEO. "The family understand this may not work, but they've merely embraced the view of, 'let's give it a go and let's go as soon as we can', because the price of it is not relevant," he stated.
Overly Optimistic
There are some in the private teaching field who share similar reservations.
An education leader, chief executive of Blue Education, who provides individual instructors, stated that "the journey of embracing two identities, or indeed, forming one's identity, is something that must be lived into, not manufactured."
Peter noted that he had relocated from China to the Britain at the age of seven, and had been educated understanding and embodying dual heritages. He went on to be educated at a prestigious UK institution.
"The notion that a single person can act as a embodiment of Britishness, a person who can possibly transplant the attributes of a UK sophisticate to a 12-month-old child, strikes me as idealistic and impractical," he wrote.
"Based on my background, engaging a quintessentially English tutor from early childhood will does not automatically achieve the result they want.
"I never had such a tutor, and yet I have been fortunate enough to enjoy several of the situations they aspire for their son."
He continued: "The reality is, cultural identity cannot be forced from the outside; it must be chosen, and it must be internally driven."
Purchasing UK Culture
Naturally, English culture is something the CEO hopes can be educated – and commercialized.
"In my view the situation that the global community holds us in this regard is something that we should be cherishing|valuing|appreciating
