"A household based in north London is looking for an extraordinary and qualified tutor to assist their youngest child on his first steps to becoming an English gentleman."
When reading this listing, you might easily overlook the wording "initial stages" as simple a turn of phrase.
However, it could be the crucial element of this unique position posting, as it aims to hire a teacher for a one-year-old.
Many of applications have since been received since the anonymous family advertised their call for the £180k-a-year tutor, who has to be "a uniquely qualified person".
During the past few weeks, the post has gained attention in the media, with numerous asking why?
Innovative Idea
A tutoring expert, head and founder of an education consultancy, which is helping the family in their quest, explained that despite first doubt, he found the plan "forward-looking", and "progressive".
When he met the family, he mentioned they appreciated the unusual nature of their request, and how immature their son is.
But, they stated that they "were unwilling to delay any longer" to engage a tutor, as they had postponed until their firstborn was five, and by that stage "cultural influence had already taken hold".
What precisely did the family indicate by "cultural leaning"?
It's "everything", the expert responded. "How you eat, the manner you speak".
He said the elder child had absorbed "extremely delicate, unspoken signals" from the family, and had adopted their cultural ways. The family told the consultant they hoped to prevent this pattern to recur with their infant.
The intention: To hire a UK tutor, who needs to speak with Received Pronunciation, to guide the baby right from the beginning.
Natural Absorption
"A great deal of the learning at the beginning here is somewhat osmotic," explained the CEO.
It's via this natural absorption that the family are aiming the child will adopt the English characteristics they want to impart.
The consultant explained the tutor needed to be an individual who went to "the right kinds of schools – comparable categories of schools as the family plan to send their son to".
"The educator must be the appropriate candidate, they'll be doing things they may not realize they're doing, simply by nature," he commented.
Money No Object
The family informed the expert the successful candidate should preferably also have understanding of or passion in riding, winter sports, artistic pursuits and music so as to influence the child in a diverse set of interests.
Furthermore though, he said the family desired the tutor to enrol the child on a range of classes 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 success and open doors.
"For all the advantages and disadvantages of that, because it's definitely a class statement," he comments.
However, in spite of all this instruction in "English culture", might the child absorb so-called cultural leaning from the globally influenced family he lives with in any case?
"Absolutely", said he. "They know this could fail, but they've merely embraced the perspective of, 'why not attempt it and we should start as soon as we can', because the price of it is not relevant," he stated.
Impractical
A number of in the education sector who share similar reservations.
Peter Cui, chief executive of Blue Education, who supplies private tutors, wrote that "the journey of adopting dual cultures, or in fact, becoming oneself, is something that must be experienced personally, not manufactured."
The expert explained that he had relocated from the Far East to the UK at the time of 7 years old, and had been raised knowing and living two backgrounds. He progressed to learn at a prestigious UK institution.
"The idea that one individual can function as a embodiment of UK identity, someone who can somehow transplant the qualities of a British gentleman to a 12-month-old child, seems to me naive and unrealistic," he commented.
"From my perspective, employing a distinctly UK tutor from early childhood will does not instantly create the goal they want.
"I did not have that kind of mentor, and however I have been privileged enough to enjoy many of the opportunities they hope for their son."
He continued: "The reality is, personal identity should not be forced from the outside; it must be selected, and it must be internally driven."
Buying Britishness
Certainly, English culture is something the expert believes can be instructed – and sold.
"I think the situation that the global community regards us in this regard is something that we should be cherishing|valuing|appreciating
