"A family based in North London wants to find an exceptional and experienced instructor to guide their smallest child on his first steps to becoming an British gentleman."
When reading this advertisement, you might naturally overlook the wording "initial stages" as just a turn of phrase.
Yet, it might be the most significant part of this unique position posting, as it seeks to find a teacher for a infant.
Hundreds of applications have already been sent in since the unidentified family advertised their call for the £180,000 per year tutor, who has to be "an exceptional individual".
During the past few weeks, the advert has attracted notice across the media, with several asking why?
Forward-Thinking Method
A tutoring expert, chief executive of a global tutoring firm, which is supporting the family in their hunt, explained that in spite of initial doubt, he considered the concept "visionary", and "progressive".
When he spoke with the family, he noted they recognized the atypical aspect of their request, and how early in age their son is.
But, they clarified that they "preferred not to postpone any longer" to get a tutor, as they had postponed until their older child was five, and by that age "cultural bias had already set in".
What exactly does the family mean by "cultural bias"?
It's "comprehensive", he answered. "How you eat, the way you speak".
He said the firstborn had adopted "extremely delicate, non-verbal cues" from the family, and had adopted their cultural norms. The family told Adam they hoped to prevent this pattern to happen again with their younger child.
The plan: To hire a English tutor, who should speak with Received Pronunciation, to guide the baby from day one.
Subtle Influence
"A great deal of the education at the outset here is kind of osmotic," said the expert.
It's via this subtle influence that the family are expecting the child will acquire the English characteristics they want to cultivate.
The consultant noted the tutor had to be someone who studied at "the appropriate educational institutions – similar types of schools as the family hope to send their son to".
"The educator just has to be the appropriate candidate, they'll be doing things they may not realize they're doing, just naturally," he said.
Expense Not a Factor
The family informed the expert the selected educator should preferably also have knowledge of or interest in equestrian activities, alpine skiing, the arts and music so as to shape the child in a diverse set of passions.
More than that though, he said the family desired the tutor to sign up the child on a selection of lessons so the child would be "horseback riding and picking up an instrument by the time they are approximately three years old".
In the family's perspective, assisting their son become a "British gentleman" will result in achievement and open doors.
"For all the advantages and disadvantages of that, because it's definitely a class statement," he comments.
Yet, despite all this instruction in "Britishness", could the child absorb alleged cultural leaning from the multicultural family he is raised by anyway?
"Certainly", said Adam. "The family understand this could fail, but they've merely embraced the attitude of, 'why not attempt it and let's go as early as we can', because the price of it is irrelevant," he stated.
Impractical
Several in the private teaching field who express similar concerns.
An education leader, head and founder of an educational organization, who provides individual instructors, wrote that "the development of adopting dual cultures, or in fact, discovering oneself, is something that must be experienced personally, not manufactured."
He explained that he had relocated from the Far East to the UK at the period of seven, and had been educated experiencing and embodying both cultures. He continued to study at Cambridge University.
"The notion that a single person can function as a embodiment of Britishness, an individual who can in some way transfer the characteristics of a UK sophisticate onto a one-year-old child, strikes me as naive and impractical," he stated.
"From my perspective, having a quintessentially British tutor from infancy will not instantly create the result they hope for.
"I wasn't provided with that kind of mentor, and however I have been privileged enough to live numerous of the opportunities they hope for their son."
He continued: "The reality is, personal identity cannot be imposed from the external environment; it must be selected, and it must originate internally."
Buying Britishness
Naturally, English culture is something the CEO hopes can be taught – and commercialized.
"I believe the situation that the international society regards us in this respect is something that we should be cherishing|valuing|appreciating
