"A family residing in the northern part of London wants to find an exceptional and skilled instructor to support their youngest child on his initial journey to growing into an British gentleman."
Looking at this advertisement, you might readily miss the wording "beginning" as just an expression.
But, it may be the most important aspect of this unusual job advert, as it attempts to hire a tutor for a infant.
Many of responses have now been received since the anonymous family posted their search for the highly paid tutor, who needs to be "someone very special".
In recent few weeks, the listing has attracted notice across the news, with several questioning why?
Forward-Thinking Method
Adam Caller, CEO and founder of Tutors International, which is supporting the family in their search, said that in spite of early doubt, he found the idea "forward-looking", and "progressive".
When he spoke with the family, he said they recognized the unusual aspect of their demand, and how early in age their son is.
Nevertheless, they explained that they "didn't want to wait any longer" to hire a tutor, as they had postponed until their elder sibling was five, and by that stage "cultural bias had already set in".
What exactly does the family mean by "cultural leaning"?
It's "everything", the expert replied. "The way you eat, how you speak".
He stated the firstborn had absorbed "really subtle, unspoken signals" from the family, and had adopted their cultural ways. The family informed the consultant they hoped to prevent history to repeat itself with their younger child.
The plan: To hire a English tutor, who should speak with RP, to influence the baby from the very start.
Osmotic Learning
"A great deal of the development at the beginning here is rather absorbed naturally," stated Adam.
It's through this natural absorption that the family are aiming the child will adopt the UK customs they aim to cultivate.
He noted the tutor needed to be someone who attended "the appropriate educational institutions – similar types of schools as the family aspire to send their son to".
"The tutor must be the right kind of person, they'll be performing things they may not realize they're doing, just naturally," he commented.
Money No Object
The family explained to the expert the chosen tutor should preferably also have understanding of or interest in riding, skiing, creative fields and music so as to inspire the child in a wide range of passions.
More than that though, he explained 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 instrument by the time they are around three years old".
In the family's view, guiding their son become a "English gentleman" will lead to accomplishment and create opportunities.
"Considering the pros and cons of that, because it's definitely a social class indicator," he notes.
However, notwithstanding all this guidance in "English culture", would the child adopt alleged cultural bias from the multicultural family he resides with anyway?
"Absolutely", answered the CEO. "They understand this could fail, 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 not relevant," he stated.
Idealistic and Unrealistic
There are some in the tutoring industry who share similar concerns.
Peter Cui, head and founder of Blue Education, who supplies individual instructors, stated that "the process of adopting dual cultures, or in fact, discovering oneself, is something that must be lived into, not designed."
Peter wrote that he had relocated from Asia to the UK at the age of childhood, and had been educated experiencing and living both cultures. He progressed to learn at a prestigious UK institution.
"The idea that a single person can function as a representation of English culture, a person who can somehow transfer the characteristics of a English gentleman to a infant child, seems to me optimistic and unrealistic," he stated.
"From my perspective, employing a distinctly British tutor from infancy will does not instantly produce the result they want.
"I never had that kind of mentor, and nevertheless I have been fortunate enough to experience many of the experiences they hope for their son."
He added: "The truth is, personal identity cannot be dictated from the outside influences; it must be chosen, and it must come from within."
Buying Britishness
Of course, English culture is something Adam believes can be taught – and marketed.
"I think the reality that the international society holds us in this regard is something that we should be cherishing|valuing|appreciating
