"A family located in the northern part of London seeks an remarkable and experienced tutor to guide their most junior child on his initial journey to growing into an British gentleman."
When reading this advertisement, you might easily overlook the wording "beginning" as simple an expression.
But, it might be the most important aspect of this unique job advert, as it attempts to hire a teacher for a infant.
Many of responses have already been sent in since the anonymous family posted their search for the highly paid tutor, who needs to be "a uniquely qualified person".
Over the last few weeks, the post has gained attention across the news, with several asking why?
Innovative Idea
A tutoring expert, CEO and founder of Tutors International, which is helping the family in their search, stated that notwithstanding initial scepticism, he considered the concept "visionary", and "advanced".
When he spoke with the family, he noted they understood the unusual character of their request, and how early in age their son is.
However, they stated that they "preferred not to postpone any longer" to get a tutor, as they had waited until their older child was five, and by that stage "cultural conditioning had already taken hold".
But what does the family refer to by "cultural bias"?
It's "all-encompassing", Adam replied. "How you eat, the way you speak".
He stated the elder child had picked up "very nuanced, body language" from the family, and had taken on their cultural norms. The family explained to the consultant they did not want the same situation to happen again with their younger child.
The plan: To bring in a British tutor, who must speak with RP, to influence the baby from the very start.
Subtle Influence
"A lot of the learning at the beginning here is somewhat osmotic," explained the CEO.
It's via this natural absorption that the family are expecting the child will pick up the British traits they wish to cultivate.
He noted the tutor needed to be an individual who went to "the appropriate educational institutions – comparable categories of schools as the family aspire to send their son to".
"The instructor just has to be the suitable individual, they'll be carrying out things they aren't even aware they're doing, effortlessly," he said.
Money No Object
The family informed Adam the selected educator should ideally also have understanding of or interest in riding, winter sports, the arts and instrumental training so as to inspire the child in a broad spectrum of interests.
Additionally though, he said the family wanted the tutor to sign up the child on a selection of classes so the child would be "pony-riding and starting an instrument by the time they are about three years old".
In the family's minds, helping their son develop into a "English gentleman" will bring about success and create opportunities.
"Taking into account the rights and wrongs of that, because it's definitely a social class indicator," he notes.
But, despite all this instruction in "English culture", might the child pick up what is termed cultural bias from the globally influenced family he lives with anyway?
"Yes", said the CEO. "The parents realize this could fail, but they've merely embraced the view of, 'let's give it a go and let's go as quickly as we can', because the price of it is not relevant," he explained.
Impractical
Several in the tutoring industry who express similar doubts.
Peter Cui, CEO and founder of an educational organization, who provides personal educators, stated that "the process of adopting dual cultures, or in fact, becoming oneself, is something that must be experienced personally, not engineered."
The expert noted that he had relocated from Asia to the United Kingdom at the time of childhood, and had been brought up understanding and living both cultures. He continued to study at a prestigious UK institution.
"The notion that one individual can serve as a embodiment of English culture, an individual who can somehow transplant the characteristics of a English gentleman to a infant child, seems to me optimistic and unfeasible," he stated.
"In my experience, engaging a distinctly English tutor from babyhood will does not instantly achieve the outcome they want.
"I wasn't provided with that kind of mentor, and yet I have been lucky enough to enjoy many of the experiences they aspire for their son."
He continued: "The fact is, self-identity should not be forced from the outside influences; it must be chosen, and it must be internally driven."
Acquiring Englishness
Certainly, Britishness is something the expert hopes can be instructed – and commercialized.
"In my view the situation that the world holds us in this respect is something that we should be cherishing|valuing|appreciating
