"Parents based in north London wants to find an remarkable and qualified tutor to assist their smallest child on his first steps to becoming an English gentleman."
When reading this advertisement, you might naturally skip the term "beginning" as mere figurative language.
But, it may be the most significant part of this unusual position posting, as it seeks to hire a teacher for a one-year-old.
Many of applications have since been received since the anonymous family posted their request for the highly paid tutor, who must be "an exceptional individual".
During the past few weeks, the listing has received interest throughout the media, with several wondering why?
Progressive Approach
Adam Caller, CEO and founder of Tutors International, which is assisting the family in their quest, stated that despite first skepticism, he considered the concept "visionary", and "advanced".
When he consulted the family, he noted they understood the unconventional character of their request, and how young their son is.
Nevertheless, they stated that they "preferred not to postpone any longer" to engage a tutor, as they had held off until their elder sibling was five, and by that age "cultural bias had already become established".
But what did the family indicate by "cultural leaning"?
It's "everything", Adam replied. "How you eat, the way you speak".
He stated the firstborn had adopted "extremely delicate, unspoken signals" from the family, and had taken on their cultural norms. The family told him they hoped to prevent history to happen again with their infant.
The strategy: To bring in a UK tutor, who must speak with Received Pronunciation, to influence the baby right from the beginning.
Subtle Influence
"A lot of the development at the start here is rather absorbed naturally," explained the CEO.
It's via this natural absorption that the family are aiming the child will pick up the UK customs they aim to cultivate.
He noted the tutor had to be somebody who went to "the appropriate educational institutions – the same kinds of schools as the family aspire to send their son to".
"The educator simply needs to be the suitable individual, they'll be carrying out things they may not realize they're doing, just naturally," he added.
Money No Object
The family informed Adam the selected educator should ideally also have familiarity of or enthusiasm in riding, skiing, the arts and instrumental training so as to inspire the child in a wide range of hobbies.
Additionally though, he explained the family wanted the tutor to sign up the child on a range of lessons so the child would be "horseback riding and picking up an instrument by the time they are about three years old".
In the family's minds, assisting their son grow into a "British gentleman" will result in accomplishment and create opportunities.
"Taking into account the pros and cons of that, because it's definitely a social class indicator," he comments.
Yet, despite all this instruction in "English culture", would the child pick up what is termed cultural leaning from the globally influenced family he is raised by in any case?
"Absolutely", answered he. "They know this may not work, but they've simply adopted the attitude of, 'let's give it a go and let's go as early as we can', because the expense of it is irrelevant," he said.
Idealistic and Unrealistic
There are some in the education sector who have those doubts.
Peter Cui, CEO and founder of Blue Education, who also offer individual instructors, wrote that "the journey of adopting dual cultures, or indeed, becoming oneself, is something that must be lived into, not designed."
The expert wrote that he had emigrated from the Far East to the Britain at the period of seven, and had been educated experiencing and embodying both cultures. He went on to learn at a prestigious UK institution.
"The notion that a single person can function as a living vessel of Britishness, someone who can possibly transplant the characteristics of a English gentleman onto a infant child, seems to me optimistic and impractical," he wrote.
"From my perspective, engaging a typically British tutor from infancy will will not automatically achieve the goal they hope for.
"I wasn't provided with such a figure, and yet I have been lucky enough to enjoy several of the situations they aspire for their son."
He added: "The fact is, personal identity cannot be forced from the external environment; it must be selected, and it must originate internally."
Acquiring Englishness
Naturally, UK identity is something the CEO believes can be educated – and commercialized.
"I think the fact that the global community holds us in this regard is something that we should be cherishing|valuing|appreciating
