"A family based in north London is looking for an extraordinary and skilled educator to assist their smallest child on his first steps to growing into an British gentleman."
Upon seeing this post, you might naturally overlook the phrase "first-steps" as simple figurative language.
Yet, it might be the most significant part of this unusual position posting, as it attempts to find a tutor for a infant.
Many of applications have since been received since the unidentified family published their call for the highly paid tutor, who needs to be "someone very special".
During the past few weeks, the advert has gained notice throughout the media, with numerous asking why?
Forward-Thinking Method
Adam Caller, CEO and founder of a global tutoring firm, which is helping the family in their hunt, stated that despite initial doubt, he found the concept "visionary", and "advanced".
When he met the family, he said they recognized the atypical nature of their demand, and how young their son is.
Nevertheless, they clarified that they "preferred not to postpone any longer" to get a tutor, as they had held off until their older child was five, and by that point "cultural bias had already set in".
What exactly did the family mean by "cultural bias"?
It's "all-encompassing", Adam replied. "The way you eat, how you speak".
He stated the firstborn had picked up "extremely delicate, non-verbal cues" from the family, and had adopted their cultural ways. The family explained to the consultant they hoped to prevent this pattern to happen again with their younger child.
The intention: To bring in a UK tutor, who must speak with standard English accent, to guide the baby from day one.
Osmotic Learning
"A great deal of the learning at the beginning here is kind of absorbed naturally," said the expert.
It's via this natural absorption that the family are hoping the child will pick up the British traits they wish to cultivate.
He said the tutor needed to be an individual who went to "prestigious academies – similar types of schools as the family hope to send their son to".
"The tutor just has to be the suitable individual, they'll be doing things they aren't even aware they're doing, simply by nature," he commented.
Money No Object
The family told him the successful candidate should ideally also have knowledge of or interest in riding, alpine skiing, the arts and musical activities so as to inspire the child in a wide range of passions.
More than that though, he stated the family hoped the tutor to sign up the child on a variety of lessons so the child would be "horseback riding and picking up an musical instrument by the time they are around three years old".
In the family's perspective, assisting their son grow into a "UK sophisticate" will result in accomplishment and create opportunities.
"For all the pros and cons of that, because it's definitely a status symbol," he notes.
However, despite all this instruction in "Britishness", could the child adopt so-called cultural influence from the multicultural family he resides with regardless?
"Yes", replied the CEO. "They know this might not succeed, but they've simply adopted the view of, 'let's give it a go and we'll proceed as early as we can', because the cost of it is irrelevant," he explained.
Overly Optimistic
There are some in the education sector who share those doubts.
Peter Cui, head and founder of a tutoring service, who also offer personal educators, commented that "the process of adopting dual cultures, or indeed, forming one's identity, is something that must be lived into, not engineered."
The expert noted that he had emigrated from Asia to the United Kingdom at the age of 7 years old, and had been brought up experiencing and embodying two backgrounds. He went on to learn at the University of Cambridge.
"The idea that one individual can act as a embodiment of UK identity, a person who can in some way impart the attributes of a British gentleman onto a one-year-old child, appears idealistic and impractical," he wrote.
"In my experience, employing a distinctly UK tutor from early childhood will not automatically produce the goal they want.
"I wasn't provided with such a figure, and nevertheless I have been privileged enough to live many of the experiences they desire for their son."
He stated: "The reality is, personal identity cannot be imposed from the outside; it must be selected, and it must be internally driven."
Buying Britishness
Of course, UK identity is something Adam believes can be instructed – and sold.
"I think the fact that the global community regards us in this respect is something that we should be cherishing|valuing|appreciating
