"A family based in north London seeks an exceptional and experienced educator to support their most junior child on his first steps to growing into an English gentleman."
Upon seeing this advertisement, you might readily skip the term "initial stages" as mere an expression.
However, it might be the crucial element of this unusual position posting, as it seeks to recruit a mentor for a 12-month-old.
Numerous of submissions have since been submitted since the unidentified family advertised their search for the £180,000 per year tutor, who must be "an exceptional individual".
Over the last few weeks, the post has attracted interest in the press, with many wondering why?
Progressive Approach
Adam Caller, chief executive of a global tutoring firm, which is helping the family in their quest, stated that despite first skepticism, he viewed the plan "forward-looking", and "advanced".
When he consulted the family, he mentioned they understood the unconventional nature of their requirement, and how young their son is.
But, they explained that they "preferred not to postpone any longer" to engage 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 indicate by "cultural predisposition"?
It's "all-encompassing", the expert responded. "How you eat, how you speak".
He explained the elder child had absorbed "very nuanced, non-verbal cues" from the family, and had taken on their cultural ways. The family informed Adam they wished to avoid history to repeat itself with their new baby.
The intention: To bring in a British tutor, who should speak with Received Pronunciation, to guide the baby right from the beginning.
Natural Absorption
"A great deal of the learning at the beginning here is kind of absorbed naturally," said Adam.
It's through this subtle influence that the family are hoping the child will adopt the English characteristics they wish to cultivate.
He said the tutor must be someone who attended "the appropriate educational institutions – comparable categories of schools as the family hope to send their son to".
"The instructor simply needs to be the suitable individual, they'll be carrying out things they aren't even aware they're doing, simply by nature," he added.
Money No Object
The family informed him the selected educator should ideally also have familiarity of or enthusiasm in riding, alpine skiing, artistic pursuits and music so as to influence the child in a wide range of passions.
More than that though, he stated the family wanted the tutor to enrol the child on a selection of courses 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 become a "English gentleman" will bring about success and create opportunities.
"Considering the advantages and disadvantages of that, because it's definitely a social class indicator," he comments.
Yet, notwithstanding all this guidance in "Britishness", might the child adopt alleged cultural influence from the international family he resides with in any case?
"Yes", answered Adam. "They understand this could fail, but they've simply adopted the attitude of, 'let's give it a go and we should start as early as we can', because the cost of it is not relevant," he said.
Overly Optimistic
There are some in the tutoring industry who express those concerns.
Peter Cui, CEO and founder of Blue Education, who also offer individual instructors, commented that "the process of embracing two identities, or in fact, discovering oneself, is something that must be lived into, not engineered."
The expert noted that he had emigrated from the Far East to the Britain at the period of childhood, and had been brought up experiencing and embodying dual heritages. He went on to study at the University of Cambridge.
"The idea that an individual can serve as a representation of UK identity, someone who can somehow transplant the qualities of a UK sophisticate to a one-year-old child, seems to me naive and unfeasible," he commented.
"In my experience, employing a distinctly British tutor from early childhood will will not automatically produce the result they hope for.
"I never had that kind of mentor, and yet I have been lucky enough to enjoy numerous of the experiences they desire for their son."
He stated: "The truth is, cultural identity can not be imposed from the outside influences; it must be chosen, and it must come from within."
Purchasing UK Culture
Of course, English culture is something Adam believes can be taught – and sold.
"In my view the reality that the world regards us in this regard is something that we should be cherishing|valuing|appreciating
