"A family residing in north London wants to find an extraordinary and qualified instructor to guide their most junior child on his first steps to growing into an British gentleman."
When reading this post, you might readily skip the wording "first-steps" as simple an expression.
Yet, it could be the most significant part of this distinctive position posting, as it attempts to find a tutor for a one-year-old.
Many of applications have now been received since the anonymous family posted their call for the highly paid tutor, who needs to be "a uniquely qualified person".
In recent few weeks, the listing has received attention in the news, with many wondering why?
Progressive Approach
The CEO, chief executive of Tutors International, which is helping the family in their search, explained that in spite of initial scepticism, he considered the concept "visionary", and "progressive".
When he met the family, he noted they appreciated the unusual character of their demand, and how young their son is.
But, 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 set in".
What exactly did the family refer to by "cultural leaning"?
It's "comprehensive", the expert replied. "The way you eat, how you speak".
He said the firstborn had absorbed "extremely delicate, unspoken signals" from the family, and had taken on their cultural norms. The family informed him they did not want the same situation to repeat itself with their younger child.
The plan: To hire a British tutor, who needs to speak with RP, to guide the baby from the very start.
Natural Absorption
"A lot of the development at the outset here is kind of osmotic," said the CEO.
It's via this natural absorption that the family are expecting the child will adopt the UK customs they want to impart.
The consultant noted the tutor must be an individual who attended "the appropriate educational institutions – comparable categories of schools as the family hope to send their son to".
"The educator must be the appropriate candidate, they'll be carrying out things they don't even know they're doing, effortlessly," he commented.
Expense Not a Factor
The family told the expert the chosen tutor should ideally also have knowledge of or enthusiasm in equestrian activities, skiing, artistic pursuits and music so as to inspire the child in a broad spectrum of hobbies.
Furthermore though, he explained the family hoped the tutor to enrol the child on a variety of classes so the child would be "horseback riding and starting an musical instrument by the time they are about three years old".
In the family's minds, guiding their son develop into a "English gentleman" will lead to success and create opportunities.
"Taking into account the pros and cons of that, because it's certainly a class statement," he adds.
But, in spite of all this instruction in "English culture", might the child absorb so-called cultural leaning from the international family he resides with in any case?
"Certainly", replied he. "The parents realize this might not succeed, but they've simply adopted the view of, 'let's give it a go and let's go as early as we can', because the cost of it is not a concern," he stated.
Idealistic and Unrealistic
A number of in the tutoring industry who express similar reservations.
Peter Cui, head and founder of a tutoring service, who supplies personal educators, commented that "the process of adopting dual cultures, or actually, discovering oneself, is something that must be grown into, not designed."
Peter explained that he had moved from the Far East to the United Kingdom at the time of 7 years old, and had been raised understanding and practicing both cultures. He continued to study at Cambridge University.
"The notion that one individual can serve as a living vessel of English culture, an individual who can in some way transplant the characteristics of a British gentleman upon a one-year-old child, appears optimistic and impractical," he wrote.
"Based on my background, engaging a typically English tutor from infancy will will not automatically create the result they hope for.
"I never had such a figure, and yet I have been lucky enough to live several of the experiences they hope for their son."
He stated: "The reality is, personal identity cannot be dictated from the external environment; it must be chosen, and it must come from within."
Acquiring Englishness
Of course, Britishness is something the expert believes can be educated – and commercialized.
"In my view the reality that the global community views us in this regard is something that we should be cherishing|valuing|appreciating
