"A family located in north London seeks an exceptional and experienced educator to support their most junior child on his early path to becoming an English gentleman."
When reading this advertisement, you might naturally overlook the term "beginning" as just figurative language.
But, it could be the most significant aspect of this unique employment listing, as it attempts to find a teacher for a infant.
Hundreds of submissions have already been received since the unidentified family published their request for the £180k-a-year tutor, who has to be "an exceptional individual".
During the past few weeks, the listing has gained attention in the media, with many asking why?
Progressive Approach
Adam Caller, CEO and founder of an education consultancy, which is helping the family in their quest, stated that in spite of first skepticism, he viewed the idea "forward-looking", and "progressive".
When he met the family, he mentioned they appreciated the unconventional character of their requirement, and how young their son is.
However, they stated that they "were unwilling to delay any longer" to engage a tutor, as they had held off until their older child was five, and by that age "cultural bias had by then become established".
But what did the family indicate by "cultural predisposition"?
It's "everything", he replied. "How 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 him they did not want this pattern to happen again with their new baby.
The plan: To bring in a British tutor, who needs to speak with RP, to influence the baby from day one.
Subtle Influence
"A great deal of the education at the start here is rather osmotic," said the CEO.
It's via this natural absorption that the family are hoping the child will pick up the English characteristics they aim to impart.
Adam noted the tutor must be someone who went to "the appropriate educational institutions – comparable categories of schools as the family hope to send their son to".
"The tutor simply needs to be the right kind of person, they'll be doing things they may not realize they're doing, just naturally," he commented.
Cost Not Relevant
The family informed Adam the chosen tutor should ideally also have familiarity of or interest in riding, alpine skiing, artistic pursuits and music so as to influence the child in a wide range of hobbies.
Additionally 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 learning an tool by the time they are around three years old".
In the family's minds, helping their son grow into a "UK sophisticate" will bring about achievement and provide access.
"For all the rights and wrongs of that, because it's certainly a class statement," he comments.
However, in spite of all this guidance in "UK identity", could the child pick up so-called cultural leaning from the globally influenced family he lives with in any case?
"Absolutely", replied the CEO. "They understand this could fail, but they've simply adopted the attitude of, 'we should try and let's go as quickly as we can', because the cost of it is not a concern," he said.
Idealistic and Unrealistic
Several in the tutoring industry who express these concerns.
Peter Cui, head and founder of an educational organization, who supplies personal educators, stated that "the journey of adopting dual cultures, or indeed, discovering oneself, is something that must be experienced personally, not designed."
He noted that he had emigrated from China to the UK at the period of seven, and had been brought up understanding and practicing both cultures. He progressed to study at a prestigious UK institution.
"The concept that a single person can function as a representation of English culture, someone who can in some way transplant the attributes of a UK sophisticate to a one-year-old child, appears optimistic and impractical," he stated.
"From my perspective, engaging a typically English tutor from infancy will not instantly produce the outcome they desire.
"I wasn't provided with that kind of mentor, and nevertheless I have been lucky enough to enjoy many of the situations they desire for their son."
He continued: "The fact is, cultural identity can not be dictated from the outside influences; it must be chosen, and it must be internally driven."
Buying Britishness
Of course, Britishness is something Adam hopes can be educated – and commercialized.
"I believe the reality that the international society regards us in this light is something that we should be cherishing|valuing|appreciating
