"A household located in north London wants to find an remarkable and experienced tutor to assist their most junior child on his early path to turning into an British gentleman."
Looking at this post, you might easily overlook the wording "beginning" as just figurative language.
But, it may be the most important aspect of this unusual position posting, as it seeks to find a mentor for a one-year-old.
Hundreds of responses have now been received since the unidentified family advertised their call for the £180,000 per year tutor, who needs to be "an exceptional individual".
Over the last few weeks, the listing has attracted interest across the news, with numerous wondering why?
Forward-Thinking Method
Adam Caller, chief executive of an education consultancy, which is helping the family in their hunt, stated that notwithstanding first scepticism, he viewed the plan "visionary", and "innovative".
When he met the family, he said they understood the unusual character of their request, and how immature their son is.
However, they stated that they "preferred not to postpone any longer" to hire a tutor, as they had waited until their elder sibling was five, and by that age "cultural conditioning had by then become established".
What precisely did the family refer to by "cultural leaning"?
It's "everything", Adam replied. "How you eat, the manner you speak".
He said the older sibling had absorbed "extremely delicate, non-verbal cues" from the family, and had taken on their cultural norms. The family told the consultant they wished to avoid this pattern to recur with their younger child.
The intention: To bring in a English tutor, who must speak with Received Pronunciation, to influence the baby from day one.
Natural Absorption
"A lot of the education at the start here is rather absorbed naturally," stated the CEO.
It's via this natural absorption that the family are hoping the child will acquire the UK customs they want to instil.
Adam said the tutor must be someone who studied at "the appropriate educational institutions – the same kinds of schools as the family aspire to send their son to".
"The instructor simply needs to be the suitable individual, they'll be performing things they aren't even aware they're doing, simply by nature," he commented.
Cost Not Relevant
The family informed the expert the successful candidate should ideally also have familiarity of or passion in horse riding, skiing, creative fields and music so as to influence the child in a broad spectrum of hobbies.
More than that though, he said the family wanted the tutor to enrol the child on a variety of courses so the child would be "horseback riding and learning an musical instrument by the time they are approximately three years old".
In the family's minds, helping their son grow into a "British gentleman" will result in success and open doors.
"Considering the pros and cons of that, because it's certainly a social class indicator," he notes.
However, in spite of all this guidance in "UK identity", would the child adopt so-called cultural influence from the globally influenced family he resides with regardless?
"Absolutely", replied Adam. "They realize this may not work, but they've simply adopted the view of, 'let's give it a go and we'll proceed as quickly as we can', because the price of it is not relevant," he explained.
Idealistic and Unrealistic
A number of in the tutoring industry who share those concerns.
Peter Cui, head and founder of an educational organization, who also offer private tutors, commented that "the journey of adopting dual cultures, or actually, discovering oneself, is something that must be lived into, not manufactured."
The expert wrote that he had emigrated from Asia to the UK at the period of 7 years old, and had been raised understanding and living both cultures. He progressed to learn at Cambridge University.
"The idea that one individual can function as a representation of English culture, an individual who can possibly impart the attributes of a UK sophisticate to a 12-month-old child, strikes me as naive and unrealistic," he wrote.
"In my experience, having a typically UK tutor from babyhood will not necessarily produce the outcome they desire.
"I did not have such a figure, and however I have been fortunate enough to enjoy numerous of the opportunities they hope for their son."
He stated: "The truth is, self-identity can not be forced from the external environment; it must be embraced, and it must come from within."
Buying Britishness
Certainly, Britishness is something the CEO hopes can be instructed – and marketed.
"In my view the reality that the global community views us in this light is something that we should be cherishing|valuing|appreciating
