"A household located in the northern part of London seeks an remarkable and skilled instructor to guide their youngest child on his early path to growing into an English gentleman."
Upon seeing this post, you might naturally overlook the term "initial stages" as just an expression.
But, it could be the most important part of this distinctive employment listing, as it aims to recruit a teacher for a infant.
Numerous of submissions have now been sent in since the unnamed family published their request for the £180k-a-year tutor, who needs to be "a uniquely qualified person".
Over the last few weeks, the post has gained interest in the media, with several asking why?
Innovative Idea
Adam Caller, CEO and founder of an education consultancy, which is assisting the family in their hunt, explained that in spite of initial doubt, he found the idea "visionary", and "progressive".
When he spoke with the family, he said they appreciated the atypical aspect of their demand, and how early in age their son is.
Nevertheless, they clarified that they "were unwilling to delay any longer" to get a tutor, as they had postponed until their older child was five, and by that age "cultural bias had already taken hold".
But what did the family mean by "cultural bias"?
It's "comprehensive", the expert replied. "How you eat, the way you speak".
He stated the elder child had picked up "really subtle, unspoken signals" from the family, and had assumed their cultural norms. The family told him they wished to avoid history to repeat itself with their new baby.
The strategy: To hire a UK tutor, who needs to speak with Received Pronunciation, to guide the baby from the very start.
Osmotic Learning
"A great deal of the development at the start here is kind of absorbed naturally," said Adam.
It's through this subtle influence that the family are aiming the child will pick up the UK customs they wish to impart.
The consultant noted the tutor must be an individual who went to "prestigious academies – comparable categories of schools as the family aspire to send their son to".
"The instructor must be the right kind of person, they'll be doing things they may not realize they're doing, just naturally," he said.
Expense Not a Factor
The family told the expert the selected educator should ideally also have familiarity of or interest in horse riding, skiing, artistic pursuits and music so as to shape the child in a broad spectrum of passions.
Furthermore though, he said the family hoped the tutor to enrol the child on a selection of courses so the child would be "horseback riding and learning an tool by the time they are approximately three years old".
In the family's perspective, helping their son become a "English gentleman" will bring about accomplishment and create opportunities.
"For all the advantages and disadvantages of that, because it's definitely a status symbol," he comments.
However, despite all this tutelage in "Britishness", might the child pick up what is termed cultural bias from the globally influenced family he is raised by anyway?
"Certainly", answered Adam. "The parents understand this may not work, but they've just taken the view of, 'why not attempt it and we should start as soon as we can', because the cost of it is not relevant," he said.
Idealistic and Unrealistic
There are some in the tutoring industry who express similar concerns.
Another CEO, CEO and founder of a tutoring service, who also offer personal educators, wrote that "the process of adopting dual cultures, or in fact, discovering oneself, is something that must be grown into, not engineered."
The expert noted that he had relocated from China to the United Kingdom at the period of 7 years old, and had been brought up understanding and practicing two backgrounds. He went on to learn at Cambridge University.
"The concept that one individual can act as a living vessel of Britishness, an individual who can somehow impart the characteristics of a British gentleman onto a infant child, appears naive and unrealistic," he commented.
"Based on my background, having a quintessentially British tutor from infancy will does not automatically achieve the goal they want.
"I wasn't provided with such a tutor, and nevertheless I have been fortunate enough to live many of the situations they hope for their son."
He stated: "The truth is, cultural identity should not be dictated from the outside; it must be chosen, and it must originate internally."
Acquiring Englishness
Certainly, English culture is something the CEO believes can be instructed – and commercialized.
"I think the fact that the world views us in this light is something that we should be cherishing|valuing|appreciating
