"A household based in the northern part of London seeks an exceptional and skilled tutor to support their most junior child on his early path to becoming an British gentleman."
Upon seeing this listing, you might readily skip the wording "first-steps" as simple a turn of phrase.
However, it might be the most important part of this unusual position posting, as it aims to recruit a tutor for a infant.
Numerous of submissions have now been sent in since the unidentified family posted their call for the £180,000 per year tutor, who must be "an exceptional individual".
During the past few weeks, the listing has attracted notice across the news, with many questioning why?
Progressive Approach
A tutoring expert, CEO and founder of an education consultancy, which is helping the family in their hunt, stated that in spite of initial scepticism, he viewed the idea "visionary", and "advanced".
When he spoke with the family, he noted they understood the atypical character of their request, and how immature their son is.
But, they stated that they "preferred not to postpone any longer" to engage a tutor, as they had postponed until their firstborn was five, and by that point "cultural conditioning had by then taken hold".
What precisely did the family refer to by "cultural predisposition"?
It's "comprehensive", Adam responded. "The way you eat, the way you speak".
He explained the firstborn had adopted "very nuanced, non-verbal cues" from the family, and had taken on their cultural habits. The family informed Adam they wished to avoid history to recur with their infant.
The intention: To bring in a UK tutor, who must speak with standard English accent, to shape the baby right from the beginning.
Osmotic Learning
"A lot of the learning at the outset here is somewhat osmotic," stated the CEO.
It's by means of this subtle influence that the family are hoping the child will adopt the UK customs they wish to impart.
Adam explained the tutor must be someone who went to "the appropriate educational institutions – similar types of schools as the family hope to send their son to".
"The tutor just has to be the appropriate candidate, they'll be carrying out things they may not realize they're doing, simply by nature," he said.
Expense Not a Factor
The family explained to Adam the successful candidate should ideally also have understanding of or interest in equestrian activities, winter sports, artistic pursuits and instrumental training so as to influence the child in a broad spectrum of interests.
Additionally though, he said the family hoped the tutor to sign up the child on a selection of classes so the child would be "horseback riding and starting an instrument by the time they are about three years old".
In the family's perspective, guiding their son become a "English gentleman" will result in success and open doors.
"Considering the advantages and disadvantages of that, because it's definitely a status symbol," he comments.
However, notwithstanding all this instruction in "Britishness", would the child adopt alleged cultural influence from the globally influenced family he lives with regardless?
"Absolutely", answered Adam. "The family know this could fail, but they've just taken the perspective of, 'we should try and let's go as quickly as we can', because the expense of it is not relevant," he stated.
Idealistic and Unrealistic
A number of in the private teaching field who share those concerns.
An education leader, chief executive of an educational organization, who provides individual instructors, wrote that "the process of embracing two identities, or in fact, forming one's identity, is something that must be experienced personally, not engineered."
He noted that he had relocated from China to the UK at the time of seven, and had been raised knowing and embodying two backgrounds. He went on to study at Cambridge University.
"The notion that a single person can act as a embodiment of English culture, a person who can somehow transfer the characteristics of a British gentleman upon a one-year-old child, strikes me as idealistic and unfeasible," he stated.
"Based on my background, employing a quintessentially English tutor from babyhood will does not automatically achieve the result they want.
"I wasn't provided with such a figure, and however I have been lucky enough to experience several of the opportunities they desire for their son."
He stated: "The reality is, cultural identity should not be imposed from the outside influences; it must be selected, and it must come from within."
Buying Britishness
Of course, UK identity is something the CEO believes can be taught – and sold.
"In my view the fact that the global community holds us in this respect is something that we should be cherishing|valuing|appreciating
