"A household based in north London wants to find an remarkable and skilled educator to guide their smallest child on his early path to turning into an English gentleman."
When reading this listing, you might easily miss the phrase "first-steps" as mere figurative language.
Yet, it could be the most important part of this distinctive position posting, as it attempts to recruit a tutor for a infant.
Many of applications have already been submitted since the unidentified family published their call for the highly paid tutor, who has to be "a uniquely qualified person".
In recent few weeks, the listing has gained attention in the media, with many wondering why?
Innovative Idea
A tutoring expert, chief executive of an education consultancy, which is helping the family in their search, explained that notwithstanding initial doubt, he found the concept "far sighted", and "advanced".
When he consulted the family, he noted they appreciated the unusual nature of their demand, and how early in age their son is.
However, they stated that they "didn't want to wait any longer" to engage a tutor, as they had postponed until their older child was five, and by that stage "cultural influence had already taken hold".
What exactly did the family indicate by "cultural predisposition"?
It's "everything", he answered. "The manner you eat, the way you speak".
He explained the firstborn had adopted "really subtle, unspoken signals" from the family, and had taken on their cultural norms. The family informed Adam they wished to avoid this pattern to happen again with their new baby.
The intention: To engage a British tutor, who must speak with standard English accent, to guide the baby from day one.
Osmotic Learning
"Much of the development at the outset here is rather acquired indirectly," explained the expert.
It's via this osmosis that the family are expecting the child will pick up the UK customs they want to impart.
The consultant explained the tutor needed to be someone who went to "the right kinds of schools – similar types of schools as the family hope to send their son to".
"The instructor simply needs to be the appropriate candidate, they'll be doing things they may not realize they're doing, effortlessly," he said.
Money No Object
The family explained to the expert the successful candidate should preferably also have familiarity of or passion in riding, skiing, the arts and music so as to influence the child in a broad spectrum of interests.
More than that though, he said the family desired the tutor to enrol the child on a variety of classes so the child would be "pony-riding and learning an instrument by the time they are around three years old".
In the family's perspective, assisting their son become a "British gentleman" will bring about success and create opportunities.
"For all the advantages and disadvantages of that, because it's definitely a social class indicator," he notes.
However, despite all this guidance in "UK identity", might the child adopt so-called cultural leaning from the multicultural family he resides with in any case?
"Certainly", said the CEO. "The parents know this might not succeed, but they've merely embraced the perspective of, 'we should try and let's go as quickly as we can', because the cost of it is not relevant," he explained.
Impractical
A number of in the private teaching field who share similar doubts.
Peter Cui, chief executive of Blue Education, who provides personal educators, stated that "the development of adopting dual cultures, or indeed, becoming oneself, is something that must be experienced personally, not designed."
The expert noted that he had relocated from the Far East to the UK at the time of seven, and had been raised knowing and living both cultures. He progressed to learn at the University of Cambridge.
"The idea that an individual can act as a embodiment of UK identity, a person who can in some way transplant the attributes of a British gentleman upon a one-year-old child, seems to me idealistic and impractical," he stated.
"Based on my background, having a typically British tutor from babyhood will will not automatically create the outcome they hope for.
"I wasn't provided with that kind of mentor, and nevertheless I have been lucky enough to experience several of the situations they aspire for their son."
He added: "The reality is, self-identity should not be forced from the outside influences; it must be embraced, and it must come from within."
Buying Britishness
Naturally, UK identity is something Adam hopes can be educated – and commercialized.
"I believe the reality that the world regards us in this light is something that we should be cherishing|valuing|appreciating
