"A family residing in north London is looking for an remarkable and skilled educator to guide their youngest child on his initial journey to turning into an English gentleman."
When reading this advertisement, you might easily miss the wording "first-steps" as simple a turn of phrase.
However, it might be the most important aspect of this unique position posting, as it aims to recruit a mentor for a infant.
Many of responses have already been submitted since the anonymous family published their call for the £180,000 per year tutor, who must be "a uniquely qualified person".
During the past few weeks, the listing has received interest across the media, with several asking why?
Forward-Thinking Method
The CEO, CEO and founder of a global tutoring firm, which is helping the family in their hunt, explained that despite initial scepticism, he viewed the concept "far sighted", and "progressive".
When he spoke with the family, he said they appreciated the unusual aspect of their requirement, and how early in age their son is.
But, they stated that they "were unwilling to delay any longer" to engage a tutor, as they had held off until their elder sibling was five, and by that age "cultural influence had already set in".
But what does the family mean by "cultural predisposition"?
It's "everything", he answered. "How you eat, the way you speak".
He said the older sibling had adopted "really subtle, non-verbal cues" from the family, and had assumed their cultural ways. The family told the consultant they wished to avoid this pattern to repeat itself with their infant.
The plan: To hire a British tutor, who needs to speak with RP, to guide the baby from day one.
Osmotic Learning
"Much of the development at the start here is kind of osmotic," said Adam.
It's via this subtle influence that the family are hoping the child will adopt the UK customs they want to cultivate.
He said the tutor must be an individual who attended "prestigious academies – the same kinds of schools as the family aspire to send their son to".
"The tutor simply needs to be the appropriate candidate, they'll be doing things they may not realize they're doing, effortlessly," he said.
Money No Object
The family informed the expert the selected educator should preferably also have familiarity of or enthusiasm in riding, skiing, the arts and musical activities so as to inspire the child in a broad spectrum of passions.
More than that though, he stated the family desired the tutor to register the child on a variety 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 minds, guiding their son become a "British gentleman" will result in accomplishment and open doors.
"Taking into account the pros and cons of that, because it's certainly a status symbol," he adds.
However, despite all this guidance in "English culture", could the child pick up what is termed cultural bias from the multicultural family he resides with regardless?
"Yes", said he. "They realize this could fail, but they've merely embraced the perspective 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.
Impractical
There are some in the tutoring industry who have these doubts.
Another CEO, chief executive of an educational organization, who also offer individual instructors, wrote that "the process of adopting dual cultures, or in fact, forming one's identity, is something that must be grown into, not designed."
Peter noted that he had moved from China to the UK at the age of seven, and had been brought up experiencing and embodying two backgrounds. He continued to learn at Cambridge University.
"The notion that one individual can function as a living vessel of UK identity, a person who can possibly impart the qualities of a British gentleman onto a 12-month-old child, appears optimistic and impractical," he wrote.
"In my experience, engaging a quintessentially British tutor from infancy will not automatically produce the goal they hope for.
"I did not have such a tutor, and however I have been fortunate enough to live numerous of the experiences they desire for their son."
He added: "The reality is, cultural identity cannot be imposed from the outside influences; it must be chosen, and it must come from within."
Buying Britishness
Naturally, UK identity is something Adam believes can be educated – and sold.
"I think the fact that the international society holds us in this light is something that we should be cherishing|valuing|appreciating
