"Parents located in north London seeks an extraordinary and experienced tutor to assist their youngest child on his initial journey to becoming an British gentleman."
Upon seeing this post, you might naturally miss the wording "beginning" as just an expression.
Yet, it could be the most important part of this unusual employment listing, as it seeks to find a tutor for a 12-month-old.
Many of applications have now been submitted since the anonymous family posted their call for the £180k-a-year tutor, who has to be "a uniquely qualified person".
Over the last few weeks, the advert has received notice in the news, with many asking why?
Progressive Approach
Adam Caller, head and founder of an education consultancy, which is assisting the family in their search, said that notwithstanding initial skepticism, he found the concept "forward-looking", and "advanced".
When he spoke with the family, he noted they appreciated the unusual character of their request, and how immature their son is.
However, they stated that they "preferred not to postpone any longer" to get a tutor, as they had held off until their firstborn was five, and by that age "cultural bias had already taken hold".
But what did the family refer to by "cultural leaning"?
It's "comprehensive", Adam answered. "How you eat, how you speak".
He explained the firstborn had absorbed "really subtle, unspoken signals" from the family, and had adopted their cultural norms. The family explained to the consultant they wished to avoid this pattern to happen again with their infant.
The intention: To hire a British tutor, who needs to speak with RP, to guide the baby from day one.
Natural Absorption
"A lot of the development at the beginning here is rather osmotic," said the expert.
It's via this subtle influence that the family are hoping the child will acquire the UK customs they wish to cultivate.
He noted the tutor needed to be someone who attended "the appropriate educational institutions – comparable categories of schools as the family hope to send their son to".
"The instructor simply needs to be the right kind of person, they'll be doing things they don't even know they're doing, just naturally," he commented.
Money No Object
The family explained to him the chosen tutor should ideally also have knowledge of or passion in riding, alpine skiing, creative fields and music so as to inspire the child in a diverse set 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 "equestrian training and learning an musical instrument by the time they are about three years old".
In the family's perspective, guiding their son grow into a "English gentleman" will result in achievement and provide access.
"Considering the rights and wrongs of that, because it's undoubtedly a social class indicator," he notes.
However, despite all this tutelage in "UK identity", might the child pick up what is termed cultural influence from the international family he lives with regardless?
"Certainly", replied he. "The parents realize this could fail, but they've simply adopted the view of, 'let's give it a go and let's go as early as we can', because the price of it is not relevant," he said.
Overly Optimistic
There are some in the private teaching field who share similar concerns.
An education leader, head and founder of an educational organization, who supplies individual instructors, commented that "the development of adopting dual cultures, or in fact, forming one's identity, is something that must be experienced personally, not manufactured."
He noted that he had relocated from Asia to the United Kingdom at the period of 7 years old, and had been raised knowing and living dual heritages. He went on to study at Cambridge University.
"The concept that a single person can serve as a representation of Britishness, a person who can possibly transplant the qualities of a English gentleman onto a infant child, strikes me as optimistic and unrealistic," he commented.
"In my experience, having a distinctly English tutor from babyhood will does not necessarily produce the goal they desire.
"I did not have such a tutor, and however I have been fortunate enough to enjoy many of the situations they desire for their son."
He continued: "The reality is, cultural identity can not be forced from the outside influences; it must be selected, and it must originate internally."
Purchasing UK Culture
Of course, UK identity is something the expert hopes can be educated – and sold.
"I think the reality that the world holds us in this regard is something that we should be cherishing|valuing|appreciating
