"A family residing in north London wants to find an remarkable and qualified educator to guide their youngest child on his initial journey to turning into an British gentleman."
When reading this listing, you might readily skip the phrase "initial stages" as simple a turn of phrase.
But, it could be the crucial aspect of this unusual position posting, as it attempts to recruit a tutor for a 12-month-old.
Numerous of submissions have already been submitted since the unidentified family advertised their request for the £180k-a-year tutor, who needs to be "someone very special".
During the past few weeks, the post has gained attention across the news, with several asking why?
Forward-Thinking Method
The CEO, head and founder of Tutors International, which is supporting the family in their hunt, stated that notwithstanding initial scepticism, he considered the plan "visionary", and "advanced".
When he consulted the family, he mentioned they appreciated the unusual aspect of their requirement, and how young their son is.
Nevertheless, they stated that they "preferred not to postpone any longer" to engage a tutor, as they had postponed until their elder sibling was five, and by that age "cultural conditioning had already taken hold".
What exactly did the family indicate by "cultural leaning"?
It's "all-encompassing", Adam replied. "The manner you eat, the manner you speak".
He said the elder child had absorbed "really subtle, unspoken signals" from the family, and had taken on their cultural habits. The family told him they did not want the same situation to repeat itself with their new baby.
The strategy: To engage a British tutor, who should speak with Received Pronunciation, to shape the baby from the very start.
Natural Absorption
"Much of the development at the beginning here is kind of osmotic," explained the expert.
It's via this subtle influence that the family are hoping the child will adopt the UK customs they wish to cultivate.
Adam noted the tutor must be somebody who studied at "prestigious academies – similar types of schools as the family hope to send their son to".
"The educator must be the right kind of person, they'll be carrying out things they may not realize they're doing, simply by nature," he added.
Cost Not Relevant
The family informed him the successful candidate should ideally also have understanding of or enthusiasm in equestrian activities, alpine skiing, creative fields and music so as to shape the child in a broad spectrum of interests.
Furthermore though, he stated the family wanted the tutor to enrol the child on a variety of courses so the child would be "equestrian training and learning an musical instrument by the time they are around three years old".
In the family's perspective, assisting their son develop into a "English gentleman" will bring about accomplishment and provide access.
"Taking into account the advantages and disadvantages of that, because it's definitely a status symbol," he adds.
But, despite all this instruction in "Britishness", could the child absorb so-called cultural bias from the globally influenced family he lives with regardless?
"Yes", answered he. "They understand this might not succeed, but they've merely embraced the view of, 'why not attempt it and we'll proceed as quickly as we can', because the expense of it is not relevant," he explained.
Impractical
Several in the tutoring industry who express similar doubts.
Peter Cui, head and founder of a tutoring service, who supplies individual instructors, stated that "the process of adopting dual cultures, or indeed, discovering oneself, is something that must be experienced personally, not designed."
Peter wrote that he had relocated from the Far East to the United Kingdom at the period of 7 years old, and had been educated knowing and living dual heritages. He progressed to be educated at a prestigious UK institution.
"The idea that a single person can function as a embodiment of UK identity, an individual who can in some way transplant the qualities of a English gentleman to a one-year-old child, seems to me optimistic and unfeasible," he wrote.
"From my perspective, having a typically UK tutor from infancy will will not instantly achieve the result they hope for.
"I did not have that kind of mentor, and yet I have been lucky enough to enjoy several of the opportunities they hope for their son."
He stated: "The fact is, self-identity can not be imposed from the outside influences; it must be chosen, and it must originate internally."
Purchasing UK Culture
Certainly, Britishness is something the expert hopes can be educated – and sold.
"I think the fact that the global community holds us in this respect is something that we should be cherishing|valuing|appreciating
