"Parents based in North London wants to find an extraordinary and experienced instructor to assist their smallest child on his initial journey to growing into an English gentleman."
Looking at this advertisement, you might easily skip the wording "first-steps" as simple an expression.
But, it may be the most significant part of this distinctive employment listing, as it aims to recruit a tutor for a infant.
Hundreds of responses have already been sent in since the unidentified family advertised their request for the highly paid tutor, who must be "an exceptional individual".
During the past few weeks, the listing has gained notice throughout the press, with several questioning why?
Progressive Approach
A tutoring expert, chief executive of an education consultancy, which is assisting the family in their search, said that in spite of initial scepticism, he viewed the idea "visionary", and "advanced".
When he spoke with the family, he mentioned they appreciated the atypical aspect of their request, and how immature their son is.
But, they clarified that they "preferred not to postpone any longer" to hire a tutor, as they had postponed until their older child was five, and by that age "cultural influence had by then become established".
What precisely does the family indicate by "cultural bias"?
It's "comprehensive", the expert answered. "The way you eat, the manner you speak".
He explained the older sibling had adopted "extremely delicate, unspoken signals" from the family, and had adopted their cultural norms. The family told him they did not want this pattern to repeat itself with their infant.
The intention: To hire a English tutor, who should speak with standard English accent, to shape the baby from day one.
Osmotic Learning
"A lot of the learning at the start here is kind of osmotic," stated the expert.
It's by means of this osmosis that the family are aiming the child will pick up the British traits they wish to cultivate.
Adam noted the tutor must be somebody who attended "the right kinds of schools – comparable categories of schools as the family aspire to send their son to".
"The instructor just has to be the suitable individual, they'll be performing things they aren't even aware they're doing, just naturally," he added.
Expense Not a Factor
The family told Adam the successful candidate should preferably also have knowledge of or enthusiasm in riding, winter sports, artistic pursuits and instrumental training so as to influence the child in a diverse set of interests.
More than that though, he said the family desired the tutor to sign up the child on a selection of courses so the child would be "horseback riding and picking up an musical instrument by the time they are approximately three years old".
In the family's perspective, guiding their son grow into a "English gentleman" will result in success and open doors.
"For all the rights and wrongs of that, because it's definitely a social class indicator," he comments.
Yet, notwithstanding all this tutelage in "English culture", would the child adopt alleged cultural leaning from the international family he is raised by in any case?
"Certainly", said he. "They know this could fail, but they've merely embraced the perspective of, 'let's give it a go and we should start as early as we can', because the cost of it is not relevant," he explained.
Impractical
There are some in the private teaching field who share similar concerns.
An education leader, chief executive of Blue Education, who supplies personal educators, commented that "the journey of becoming bicultural, or in fact, becoming oneself, is something that must be lived into, not designed."
The expert explained that he had emigrated from Asia to the United Kingdom at the age of 7 years old, and had been educated experiencing and embodying both cultures. He continued to learn at Cambridge University.
"The concept that an individual can serve as a embodiment of English culture, an individual who can somehow transfer the qualities of a UK sophisticate to a one-year-old child, appears idealistic and unfeasible," he wrote.
"In my experience, employing a distinctly English tutor from early childhood will not necessarily create the result they desire.
"I never had that kind of mentor, and nevertheless I have been privileged enough to experience many of the experiences they desire for their son."
He added: "The reality is, self-identity can not be dictated from the outside influences; it must be embraced, and it must come from within."
Buying Britishness
Certainly, Britishness is something the expert believes can be educated – and commercialized.
"In my view the fact that the global community views us in this regard is something that we should be cherishing|valuing|appreciating
