"Parents located in North London is looking for an exceptional and qualified educator to guide their most junior child on his first steps to becoming an British gentleman."
Looking at this advertisement, you might easily overlook the term "initial stages" as simple a turn of phrase.
However, it might be the most significant element of this unique employment listing, as it seeks to recruit a teacher for a infant.
Many of applications have already been sent in since the anonymous family advertised their request for the highly paid tutor, who needs to be "a uniquely qualified person".
Over the last few weeks, the post has attracted notice throughout the press, with numerous asking why?
Progressive Approach
The CEO, CEO and founder of a global tutoring firm, which is helping the family in their quest, stated that despite early doubt, he found the concept "far sighted", and "progressive".
When he spoke with the family, he noted they recognized the atypical aspect of their requirement, and how young their son is.
However, they stated that they "were unwilling to delay any longer" to engage a tutor, as they had held off until their firstborn was five, and by that stage "cultural influence had already become established".
But what does the family indicate by "cultural predisposition"?
It's "everything", he answered. "How you eat, how you speak".
He explained the firstborn had adopted "extremely delicate, unspoken signals" from the family, and had adopted their cultural ways. The family explained to him they hoped to prevent history to repeat itself with their infant.
The intention: To engage a UK tutor, who needs to speak with standard English accent, to guide the baby right from the beginning.
Osmotic Learning
"A lot of the learning at the start here is somewhat acquired indirectly," stated the expert.
It's by means of this osmosis that the family are expecting the child will pick up the UK customs they aim to instil.
He said the tutor had to be someone who attended "prestigious academies – similar types of schools as the family plan to send their son to".
"The tutor must be the appropriate candidate, they'll be carrying out things they aren't even aware they're doing, just naturally," he added.
Cost Not Relevant
The family explained to the expert the chosen tutor should ideally also have knowledge of or enthusiasm in equestrian activities, winter sports, artistic pursuits and musical activities so as to inspire the child in a diverse set of interests.
More than that though, he stated the family hoped the tutor to sign up the child on a range of classes so the child would be "equestrian training and learning an musical instrument by the time they are about three years old".
In the family's perspective, helping their son grow into a "UK sophisticate" will result in accomplishment and provide access.
"Considering the pros and cons of that, because it's certainly a status symbol," he adds.
However, in spite of all this tutelage in "English culture", would the child absorb alleged cultural bias from the multicultural family he resides with regardless?
"Certainly", replied the CEO. "The parents realize this could fail, but they've merely embraced the perspective of, 'we should try and we'll proceed as soon as we can', because the expense of it is not relevant," he said.
Impractical
There are some in the education sector who have those reservations.
Another CEO, head and founder of an educational organization, who also offer private tutors, stated that "the development of adopting dual cultures, or in fact, forming one's identity, is something that must be lived into, not designed."
Peter wrote that he had moved from China to the United Kingdom at the period of 7 years old, and had been raised understanding and living both cultures. He continued to learn at Cambridge University.
"The concept that an individual can act as a embodiment of Britishness, someone who can possibly transfer the attributes of a English gentleman onto a 12-month-old child, strikes me as optimistic and unrealistic," he wrote.
"From my perspective, engaging a typically English tutor from babyhood will not necessarily achieve the result they want.
"I did not have such a tutor, and however I have been privileged enough to experience numerous of the experiences they desire for their son."
He stated: "The truth is, personal identity should not be imposed from the external environment; it must be selected, and it must originate internally."
Buying Britishness
Certainly, Britishness is something the expert thinks can be educated – and marketed.
"I believe the reality that the global community holds us in this light is something that we should be cherishing|valuing|appreciating
