"A family residing in the northern part of London seeks an extraordinary and experienced tutor to assist their youngest child on his initial journey to becoming an British gentleman."
When reading this advertisement, you might naturally overlook the term "beginning" as mere an expression.
But, it may be the crucial part of this unique position posting, as it attempts to find a tutor for a 12-month-old.
Numerous of responses have now been submitted since the anonymous family advertised their call for the £180,000 per year tutor, who has to be "an exceptional individual".
Over the last few weeks, the listing has received attention in the news, with numerous asking why?
Innovative Idea
Adam Caller, chief executive of a global tutoring firm, which is assisting the family in their quest, stated that notwithstanding early scepticism, he viewed the concept "forward-looking", and "innovative".
When he spoke with the family, he mentioned they recognized the atypical nature of their requirement, and how early in age their son is.
However, they explained that they "didn't want to wait any longer" to get a tutor, as they had waited until their firstborn was five, and by that stage "cultural influence had already taken hold".
What exactly does the family refer to by "cultural leaning"?
It's "everything", Adam responded. "The manner you eat, the way you speak".
He said the elder child had picked up "really subtle, unspoken signals" from the family, and had taken on their cultural habits. The family informed him they did not want history to happen again with their younger child.
The intention: To hire a UK tutor, who should speak with standard English accent, to guide the baby from the very start.
Natural Absorption
"A great deal of the learning at the outset here is kind of osmotic," said Adam.
It's via this osmosis that the family are expecting the child will acquire the UK customs they wish to instil.
The consultant noted the tutor needed to be an individual who went to "prestigious academies – the same kinds of schools as the family hope to send their son to".
"The tutor must be the appropriate candidate, they'll be doing things they may not realize they're doing, simply by nature," he commented.
Expense Not a Factor
The family informed Adam the successful candidate should ideally also have familiarity of or passion in equestrian activities, alpine skiing, the arts and instrumental training so as to inspire the child in a broad spectrum of hobbies.
More than that though, he stated the family wanted the tutor to register the child on a range of classes so the child would be "pony-riding and learning an tool by the time they are around three years old".
In the family's perspective, helping their son grow into a "UK sophisticate" will lead to success and open doors.
"For all the rights and wrongs of that, because it's certainly a class statement," he adds.
But, despite all this tutelage in "English culture", could the child absorb so-called cultural bias from the globally influenced family he is raised by anyway?
"Yes", replied the CEO. "The parents realize this might not succeed, but they've just taken the attitude of, 'we should try and we'll proceed as soon as we can', because the expense of it is not a concern," he stated.
Idealistic and Unrealistic
A number of in the private teaching field who share similar concerns.
An education leader, head and founder of a tutoring service, who supplies private tutors, stated that "the process of adopting dual cultures, or indeed, becoming oneself, is something that must be experienced personally, not designed."
The expert noted that he had moved from China to the Britain at the time of 7 years old, and had been brought up understanding and living both cultures. He continued to study at the University of Cambridge.
"The idea that a single person can function as a representation of English culture, a person who can somehow transfer the attributes of a UK sophisticate upon a 12-month-old child, seems to me naive and unfeasible," he wrote.
"In my experience, engaging a quintessentially British tutor from early childhood will not automatically produce the outcome they hope for.
"I wasn't provided with such a tutor, and nevertheless I have been privileged enough to enjoy numerous of the situations they desire for their son."
He added: "The truth is, personal identity cannot be forced from the outside influences; it must be selected, and it must originate internally."
Buying Britishness
Of course, English culture is something the CEO believes can be educated – and commercialized.
"I believe the reality that the international society views us in this respect is something that we should be cherishing|valuing|appreciating
