"A household residing in North London wants to find an remarkable and qualified instructor to assist their youngest child on his first steps to growing into an British gentleman."
Upon seeing this listing, you might readily miss the wording "first-steps" as mere an expression.
Yet, it could be the most significant element of this unique employment listing, as it seeks to find a teacher for a 12-month-old.
Hundreds of submissions have already been sent in since the anonymous family published their call for the highly paid tutor, who has to be "a uniquely qualified person".
Over the last few weeks, the advert has attracted interest across the news, with numerous wondering why?
Innovative Idea
The CEO, chief executive of Tutors International, which is assisting the family in their quest, said that despite early skepticism, he viewed the plan "forward-looking", and "progressive".
When he met the family, he said they understood the unusual nature of their demand, and how young their son is.
But, they stated that they "didn't want to wait any longer" to hire a tutor, as they had waited until their older child was five, and by that point "cultural influence had already taken hold".
But what does the family indicate by "cultural leaning"?
It's "everything", he responded. "How you eat, how you speak".
He explained the older sibling had adopted "very nuanced, body language" from the family, and had taken on their cultural habits. The family told Adam they did not want history to repeat itself with their younger child.
The intention: To engage a British tutor, who needs to speak with RP, to guide the baby from day one.
Osmotic Learning
"Much of the development at the outset here is somewhat absorbed naturally," stated the expert.
It's via this osmosis that the family are aiming the child will acquire the British traits they wish to instil.
The consultant said the tutor needed to be an individual who studied at "the right kinds of schools – similar types of schools as the family hope to send their son to".
"The tutor just has to be the appropriate candidate, they'll be carrying out things they aren't even aware they're doing, effortlessly," he said.
Cost Not Relevant
The family told Adam the successful candidate should preferably also have familiarity of or interest in horse riding, winter sports, artistic pursuits and instrumental training so as to influence the child in a diverse set of interests.
More than that though, he stated the family desired the tutor to enrol the child on a variety of courses so the child would be "equestrian training and starting an instrument by the time they are approximately three years old".
In the family's perspective, helping their son become a "English gentleman" will bring about success and provide access.
"For all the advantages and disadvantages of that, because it's undoubtedly a social class indicator," he notes.
However, despite all this guidance in "English culture", might the child adopt what is termed cultural influence from the multicultural family he resides with in any case?
"Certainly", replied the CEO. "The parents understand this may not work, but they've simply adopted the perspective of, 'let's give it a go and let's go as soon as we can', because the cost of it is not relevant," he said.
Impractical
There are some in the tutoring industry who have similar concerns.
Peter Cui, CEO and founder of an educational organization, who supplies individual instructors, commented that "the development of becoming bicultural, or in fact, forming one's identity, is something that must be lived into, not engineered."
Peter wrote that he had emigrated from China to the United Kingdom at the period of seven, and had been brought up experiencing and practicing both cultures. He continued to study at a prestigious UK institution.
"The concept that a single person can act as a representation of English culture, an individual who can possibly transplant the characteristics of a UK sophisticate onto a 12-month-old child, seems to me naive and impractical," he stated.
"In my experience, having a typically British tutor from babyhood will will not necessarily produce the goal they want.
"I never had that kind of mentor, and nevertheless I have been lucky enough to enjoy numerous of the experiences they hope for their son."
He stated: "The fact is, self-identity can not be imposed from the outside; it must be selected, and it must come from within."
Purchasing UK Culture
Naturally, English culture is something Adam thinks can be educated – and sold.
"In my view the fact that the global community holds us in this regard is something that we should be cherishing|valuing|appreciating
