"A family based in north London is looking for an remarkable and skilled tutor to support their youngest child on his first steps to turning into an British gentleman."
Upon seeing this advertisement, you might naturally overlook the term "first-steps" as mere figurative language.
But, it might be the most significant aspect of this distinctive employment listing, as it seeks to recruit a tutor for a one-year-old.
Hundreds of responses have since been received since the unnamed family posted their call for the £180,000 per year tutor, who has to be "a uniquely qualified person".
In recent few weeks, the post has gained interest in the news, with many asking why?
Innovative Idea
A tutoring expert, CEO and founder of a global tutoring firm, which is helping the family in their quest, said that notwithstanding initial doubt, he considered the idea "visionary", and "advanced".
When he spoke with the family, he mentioned they appreciated the unusual nature of their demand, and how early in age their son is.
But, they explained that they "didn't want to wait any longer" to engage a tutor, as they had postponed until their older child was five, and by that age "cultural conditioning had by then set in".
But what does the family mean by "cultural bias"?
It's "comprehensive", the expert answered. "The way you eat, how you speak".
He stated the elder child had adopted "very nuanced, body language" from the family, and had adopted their cultural ways. The family informed him they hoped to prevent the same situation to recur with their new baby.
The intention: To bring in a English tutor, who must speak with standard English accent, to guide the baby from the very start.
Subtle Influence
"Much of the education at the beginning here is rather osmotic," said Adam.
It's by means of this natural absorption that the family are hoping the child will adopt the UK customs they aim to impart.
He said the tutor must be an individual who attended "prestigious academies – the same kinds 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 may not realize they're doing, just naturally," he added.
Cost Not Relevant
The family informed Adam the successful candidate should ideally also have knowledge of or interest in equestrian activities, skiing, artistic pursuits and musical activities so as to shape the child in a diverse set of interests.
More than that though, he stated the family hoped the tutor to enrol the child on a range of courses so the child would be "equestrian training and starting an instrument by the time they are around three years old".
In the family's view, assisting their son become a "UK sophisticate" will result in success and open doors.
"Taking into account the pros and cons of that, because it's definitely a status symbol," he comments.
However, despite all this instruction in "Britishness", would the child adopt so-called cultural bias from the multicultural family he lives with in any case?
"Certainly", said the CEO. "The family know this may not work, but they've just taken the perspective of, 'we should try and we should start as quickly as we can', because the price of it is irrelevant," he explained.
Idealistic and Unrealistic
A number of in the tutoring industry who share those doubts.
An education leader, CEO and founder of Blue Education, who also offer private tutors, commented that "the process of adopting dual cultures, or actually, discovering oneself, is something that must be experienced personally, not engineered."
The expert explained that he had moved from Asia to the UK at the period of seven, and had been educated understanding and living dual heritages. He went on to be educated at a prestigious UK institution.
"The concept that an individual can serve as a embodiment of English culture, someone who can somehow transfer the attributes of a UK sophisticate onto a 12-month-old child, appears idealistic and unrealistic," he stated.
"In my experience, employing a typically UK tutor from babyhood will not instantly achieve the goal they want.
"I did not have such a figure, and nevertheless I have been privileged enough to live numerous of the experiences they desire for their son."
He stated: "The fact is, cultural identity can not be imposed from the external environment; it must be chosen, and it must come from within."
Purchasing UK Culture
Naturally, Britishness is something the CEO believes can be taught – and marketed.
"I believe the fact that the international society regards us in this light is something that we should be cherishing|valuing|appreciating
