"A household residing in North London is looking for an extraordinary and qualified educator to assist their smallest child on his first steps to turning into an English gentleman."
Looking at this advertisement, you might naturally miss the wording "initial stages" as mere figurative language.
However, it might be the crucial part of this unusual employment listing, as it attempts to recruit a teacher for a 12-month-old.
Hundreds of applications have since been submitted since the unidentified family posted their search for the £180,000 per year tutor, who has to be "an exceptional individual".
During the past few weeks, the listing has received notice in the media, with several questioning why?
Forward-Thinking Method
Adam Caller, CEO and founder of a global tutoring firm, which is helping the family in their quest, explained that in spite of initial scepticism, he viewed the concept "forward-looking", and "innovative".
When he met the family, he noted they recognized the unusual character of their demand, and how young their son is.
However, they explained that they "preferred not to postpone any longer" to get a tutor, as they had held off until their firstborn was five, and by that stage "cultural influence had already set in".
What exactly did the family indicate by "cultural predisposition"?
It's "comprehensive", he answered. "How you eat, how you speak".
He stated the firstborn had picked up "extremely delicate, non-verbal cues" from the family, and had adopted their cultural ways. The family informed the consultant they hoped to prevent history to recur with their younger child.
The plan: To engage a UK tutor, who should speak with RP, to guide the baby right from the beginning.
Osmotic Learning
"A lot of the development at the outset here is kind of osmotic," stated Adam.
It's through this natural absorption that the family are expecting the child will acquire the UK customs they aim to cultivate.
Adam explained the tutor needed to be somebody who studied at "the right kinds of schools – similar types of schools as the family hope to send their son to".
"The tutor must be the right kind of person, they'll be doing things they may not realize they're doing, just naturally," he said.
Cost Not Relevant
The family told Adam the chosen tutor should ideally also have knowledge of or passion in equestrian activities, alpine skiing, creative fields and instrumental training so as to inspire the child in a diverse set of hobbies.
Additionally though, he explained the family wanted the tutor to sign up the child on a selection of lessons so the child would be "horseback riding and picking up an musical instrument by the time they are about three years old".
In the family's view, helping their son develop into a "UK sophisticate" will lead to achievement and provide access.
"Considering the advantages and disadvantages of that, because it's certainly a social class indicator," he adds.
Yet, notwithstanding all this guidance in "Britishness", might the child adopt alleged cultural bias from the international family he resides with regardless?
"Absolutely", replied the CEO. "The family know this may not work, but they've just taken the perspective of, 'we should try and let's go as soon as we can', because the price of it is not a concern," he explained.
Overly Optimistic
A number of in the education sector who have similar concerns.
Another CEO, chief executive of Blue Education, who provides personal educators, wrote that "the development of embracing two identities, or actually, forming one's identity, is something that must be experienced personally, not designed."
Peter wrote that he had emigrated from the Far East to the Britain at the age of seven, and had been raised knowing and embodying dual heritages. He went on to be educated at Cambridge University.
"The notion that one individual can function as a living vessel of UK identity, someone who can somehow transfer the qualities of a British gentleman to a infant child, strikes me as idealistic and unfeasible," he wrote.
"From my perspective, having a typically British tutor from infancy will will not instantly achieve the goal they desire.
"I never had such a tutor, and nevertheless I have been privileged enough to live numerous of the opportunities they desire for their son."
He added: "The truth is, cultural identity should not be forced from the outside influences; it must be embraced, and it must be internally driven."
Acquiring Englishness
Certainly, Britishness is something the CEO thinks can be instructed – and commercialized.
"I believe the situation that the global community regards us in this regard is something that we should be cherishing|valuing|appreciating
