"A household based in North London wants to find an remarkable and qualified educator to support their smallest child on his first steps to turning into an English gentleman."
Upon seeing this listing, you might easily overlook the term "first-steps" as just a turn of phrase.
Yet, it may be the crucial aspect of this unusual position posting, as it seeks to recruit a tutor for a one-year-old.
Hundreds of submissions have already been sent in since the unnamed family advertised their request for the £180k-a-year tutor, who must be "a uniquely qualified person".
In recent few weeks, the listing has received attention in the press, with several wondering why?
Progressive Approach
The CEO, head and founder of Tutors International, which is supporting the family in their quest, stated that in spite of early doubt, he viewed the idea "forward-looking", and "advanced".
When he spoke with the family, he noted they appreciated the atypical aspect of their demand, and how early in age their son is.
Nevertheless, they explained that they "preferred not to postpone any longer" to engage a tutor, as they had waited until their elder sibling was five, and by that age "cultural influence had by then set in".
But what did the family refer to by "cultural bias"?
It's "all-encompassing", Adam answered. "The way you eat, how you speak".
He explained the elder child had adopted "very nuanced, unspoken signals" from the family, and had assumed their cultural norms. The family told Adam they wished to avoid history to repeat itself with their younger child.
The intention: To bring in a British tutor, who should speak with Received Pronunciation, to influence the baby right from the beginning.
Subtle Influence
"A lot of the education at the outset here is kind of acquired indirectly," explained the expert.
It's through this natural absorption that the family are hoping the child will adopt the English characteristics they wish to impart.
He noted the tutor had to be somebody who went to "prestigious academies – the same kinds of schools as the family aspire to send their son to".
"The educator simply needs to be the suitable individual, they'll be performing things they aren't even aware they're doing, simply by nature," he added.
Cost Not Relevant
The family informed Adam the successful candidate should preferably also have familiarity of or enthusiasm in horse riding, alpine skiing, artistic pursuits and musical activities so as to influence the child in a wide range of hobbies.
Additionally though, he stated the family wanted the tutor to sign up the child on a range of classes so the child would be "pony-riding and picking up an tool by the time they are approximately three years old".
In the family's view, helping their son grow into a "British gentleman" will bring about achievement and provide access.
"For all the advantages and disadvantages of that, because it's undoubtedly a class statement," he notes.
But, in spite of all this tutelage in "Britishness", would the child adopt so-called cultural leaning from the multicultural family he is raised by anyway?
"Absolutely", replied the CEO. "The family understand this may not work, but they've simply adopted the perspective of, 'we should try and let's go as quickly as we can', because the price of it is irrelevant," he explained.
Impractical
A number of in the tutoring industry who express these concerns.
Another CEO, chief executive of Blue Education, who also offer personal educators, stated that "the process of embracing two identities, or in fact, becoming oneself, is something that must be lived into, not engineered."
He noted that he had moved from the Far East to the United Kingdom at the age of 7 years old, and had been raised experiencing and living both cultures. He progressed to be educated at a prestigious UK institution.
"The concept that one individual can serve as a embodiment of Britishness, an individual who can somehow impart the qualities of a British gentleman upon a 12-month-old child, seems to me idealistic and unrealistic," he stated.
"Based on my background, employing a quintessentially UK tutor from babyhood will not automatically produce the result they hope for.
"I did not have that kind of mentor, and however I have been lucky enough to live many of the opportunities they desire for their son."
He stated: "The reality is, personal identity can not be dictated from the outside influences; it must be chosen, and it must originate internally."
Buying Britishness
Naturally, UK identity is something the expert hopes can be instructed – and sold.
"I believe the reality that the international society regards us in this light is something that we should be cherishing|valuing|appreciating
