"A family located in North London seeks an exceptional and skilled tutor to support their smallest child on his early path to turning into an British gentleman."
Upon seeing this listing, you might easily skip the term "initial stages" as simple an expression.
But, it could be the most significant aspect of this unique position posting, as it attempts to recruit a mentor for a infant.
Hundreds of applications have since been submitted since the anonymous family posted their search for the £180,000 per year tutor, who must be "someone very special".
During the past few weeks, the listing has received interest in the news, with numerous asking why?
Progressive Approach
Adam Caller, head and founder of Tutors International, which is helping the family in their hunt, explained that in spite of early scepticism, he viewed the idea "visionary", and "advanced".
When he consulted the family, he said they appreciated the atypical nature of their requirement, and how early in age their son is.
Nevertheless, they clarified that they "preferred not to postpone any longer" to hire a tutor, as they had postponed until their older child was five, and by that stage "cultural conditioning had already set in".
What precisely does the family mean by "cultural bias"?
It's "comprehensive", Adam responded. "The manner you eat, the way you speak".
He explained the firstborn had adopted "extremely delicate, non-verbal cues" from the family, and had taken on their cultural habits. The family informed the consultant they wished to avoid history to happen again with their younger child.
The intention: To hire a English tutor, who needs to speak with RP, to guide the baby from day one.
Subtle Influence
"Much of the development at the outset here is kind of osmotic," explained the expert.
It's through this osmosis that the family are hoping the child will adopt the English characteristics they aim to cultivate.
He said the tutor needed to be somebody who went to "the appropriate educational institutions – comparable categories of schools as the family aspire to send their son to".
"The instructor simply needs to be the appropriate candidate, they'll be performing things they aren't even aware they're doing, just naturally," he said.
Expense Not a Factor
The family told Adam the selected educator should preferably also have familiarity of or passion in horse riding, winter sports, artistic pursuits and music so as to influence the child in a broad spectrum of hobbies.
Additionally though, he stated the family hoped the tutor to sign up the child on a selection of classes so the child would be "equestrian training and starting an instrument by the time they are about three years old".
In the family's view, assisting their son develop into a "UK sophisticate" will result in success and create opportunities.
"For all the advantages and disadvantages of that, because it's certainly a class statement," he comments.
Yet, in spite of all this guidance in "English culture", could the child pick up so-called cultural influence from the multicultural family he lives with anyway?
"Absolutely", answered he. "They understand this may not work, but they've merely embraced the view of, 'why not attempt it and we should start as early as we can', because the price of it is not relevant," he said.
Impractical
A number of in the tutoring industry who express those doubts.
An education leader, chief executive of a tutoring service, who also offer personal educators, stated that "the development of becoming bicultural, or in fact, forming one's identity, is something that must be grown into, not designed."
The expert noted that he had relocated from the Far East to the United Kingdom at the time of childhood, and had been raised experiencing and living dual heritages. He continued to study at the University of Cambridge.
"The notion that one individual can function as a living vessel of UK identity, a person who can somehow transfer the qualities of a UK sophisticate upon a 12-month-old child, strikes me as idealistic and unfeasible," he stated.
"Based on my background, engaging a quintessentially UK tutor from babyhood will does not necessarily create the goal they hope for.
"I never had such a figure, and yet I have been lucky enough to experience numerous of the opportunities they desire for their son."
He added: "The fact is, personal identity cannot be dictated from the external environment; it must be selected, and it must come from within."
Buying Britishness
Naturally, Britishness is something Adam thinks can be educated – and commercialized.
"In my view the situation that the global community regards us in this regard is something that we should be cherishing|valuing|appreciating
