"Parents located in the northern part of London is looking for an extraordinary and experienced tutor to guide their most junior child on his first steps to turning into an English gentleman."
Looking at this post, you might easily overlook the wording "initial stages" as just an expression.
Yet, it could be the most important part of this unusual job advert, as it aims to hire a mentor for a infant.
Many of applications have now been received since the anonymous family advertised their request for the highly paid tutor, who must be "an exceptional individual".
During the past few weeks, the advert has received attention throughout the media, with many asking why?
Forward-Thinking Method
Adam Caller, head and founder of Tutors International, which is assisting the family in their search, stated that in spite of first skepticism, he considered the plan "visionary", and "advanced".
When he met the family, he noted they understood the unusual nature of their requirement, 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 postponed until their firstborn was five, and by that stage "cultural bias had already taken hold".
What exactly does the family refer to by "cultural bias"?
It's "comprehensive", Adam answered. "The way you eat, how you speak".
He said the firstborn had adopted "very nuanced, non-verbal cues" from the family, and had taken on their cultural habits. The family told Adam they did not want the same situation to repeat itself with their younger child.
The plan: To engage a British tutor, who must speak with standard English accent, to influence the baby right from the beginning.
Subtle Influence
"Much of the learning at the outset here is somewhat osmotic," said Adam.
It's by means of this subtle influence that the family are aiming the child will pick up the UK customs they aim to instil.
He explained the tutor had to be somebody who studied at "the appropriate educational institutions – the same kinds of schools as the family aspire to send their son to".
"The instructor just has to be the suitable individual, they'll be doing things they aren't even aware they're doing, just naturally," he said.
Cost Not Relevant
The family informed him the successful candidate should ideally also have knowledge of or interest in equestrian activities, winter sports, creative fields and music so as to shape the child in a wide range of hobbies.
Furthermore though, he explained the family wanted the tutor to register the child on a selection of lessons so the child would be "equestrian training and starting an tool by the time they are about three years old".
In the family's minds, helping their son become a "British gentleman" will bring about achievement and open doors.
"For all the pros and cons of that, because it's definitely a class statement," he adds.
Yet, despite all this tutelage in "English culture", might the child adopt what is termed cultural bias from the globally influenced family he lives with anyway?
"Yes", answered the CEO. "The parents understand this may not work, but they've simply adopted the attitude of, 'we should try and we'll proceed as soon as we can', because the price of it is not relevant," he explained.
Idealistic and Unrealistic
A number of in the tutoring industry who have those doubts.
Peter Cui, head and founder of a tutoring service, who also offer individual instructors, stated that "the journey of becoming bicultural, or in fact, becoming oneself, is something that must be experienced personally, not engineered."
He wrote that he had moved from the Far East to the United Kingdom at the time of seven, and had been educated knowing and embodying two backgrounds. He continued to learn at Cambridge University.
"The notion that one individual can act as a living vessel of Britishness, a person who can in some way impart the characteristics of a English gentleman to a one-year-old child, strikes me as naive and unrealistic," he commented.
"From my perspective, engaging a quintessentially British tutor from babyhood will does not instantly create the result they hope for.
"I did not have such a figure, and yet I have been privileged enough to enjoy several of the experiences they desire for their son."
He added: "The fact is, self-identity should not be forced from the external environment; it must be chosen, and it must come from within."
Buying Britishness
Of course, English culture is something the CEO hopes can be educated – and sold.
"I believe the fact that the global community regards us in this respect is something that we should be cherishing|valuing|appreciating
