"A family located in the northern part of London seeks an remarkable and experienced instructor to guide their smallest child on his first steps to growing into an English gentleman."
Upon seeing this listing, you might naturally skip the wording "initial stages" as just an expression.
Yet, it might be the most important aspect of this distinctive position posting, as it seeks to find a teacher for a infant.
Hundreds of submissions have since been submitted since the unnamed family published their request for the £180,000 per year tutor, who must be "an exceptional individual".
Over the last few weeks, the post has received interest across the media, with numerous asking why?
Innovative Idea
The CEO, CEO and founder of an education consultancy, which is supporting the family in their hunt, explained that despite early scepticism, he viewed the concept "far sighted", and "advanced".
When he met the family, he said they understood the unconventional character of their demand, and how early in age their son is.
Nevertheless, they stated 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 point "cultural conditioning had by then taken hold".
What exactly did the family indicate by "cultural leaning"?
It's "everything", he answered. "The way you eat, the manner you speak".
He explained the firstborn had absorbed "really subtle, non-verbal cues" from the family, and had adopted their cultural norms. The family told the consultant they hoped to prevent history to happen again with their new baby.
The intention: To bring in a British tutor, who needs to speak with Received Pronunciation, to guide the baby right from the beginning.
Natural Absorption
"A lot of the education at the beginning here is somewhat acquired indirectly," stated the CEO.
It's via this natural absorption that the family are expecting the child will adopt the English characteristics they aim to cultivate.
Adam noted the tutor needed to be somebody who studied at "the right kinds of schools – the same kinds of schools as the family plan to send their son to".
"The instructor just has to be the appropriate candidate, they'll be carrying out things they don't even know they're doing, just naturally," he said.
Expense Not a Factor
The family explained to Adam the chosen tutor should ideally also have familiarity of or interest in riding, winter sports, the arts and musical activities so as to inspire the child in a broad spectrum of interests.
More than that though, he explained the family desired the tutor to enrol the child on a selection of lessons so the child would be "horseback riding and starting an tool by the time they are around three years old".
In the family's minds, helping their son grow into a "British gentleman" will bring about achievement and open doors.
"Taking into account the pros and cons of that, because it's undoubtedly a class statement," he notes.
But, notwithstanding all this instruction in "UK identity", would the child pick up so-called cultural bias from the multicultural family he is raised by regardless?
"Yes", said he. "They know this could fail, but they've simply adopted the view of, 'we should try and we should start as quickly as we can', because the price of it is irrelevant," he said.
Idealistic and Unrealistic
A number of in the tutoring industry who express these doubts.
An education leader, chief executive of Blue Education, who supplies private tutors, stated that "the process of adopting dual cultures, or actually, forming one's identity, is something that must be grown into, not manufactured."
Peter explained that he had moved from China to the UK at the time of seven, and had been raised understanding and living two backgrounds. He went on to study at a prestigious UK institution.
"The idea that one individual can function as a living vessel of UK identity, an individual who can possibly impart the qualities of a UK sophisticate onto a one-year-old child, appears optimistic and unrealistic," he commented.
"In my experience, engaging a distinctly British tutor from infancy will not instantly achieve the outcome they want.
"I did not have such a figure, and however I have been fortunate enough to live many of the situations they desire for their son."
He added: "The truth is, personal identity should not be forced from the outside; it must be chosen, and it must be internally driven."
Buying Britishness
Naturally, English culture is something the CEO hopes can be taught – and commercialized.
"In my view the fact that the world views us in this regard is something that we should be cherishing|valuing|appreciating
