"A family residing in North London seeks an extraordinary and skilled tutor to guide their most junior child on his early path to becoming an English gentleman."
Upon seeing this listing, you might easily overlook the phrase "first-steps" as mere a turn of phrase.
Yet, it could be the crucial element of this unusual job advert, as it aims to hire a tutor for a infant.
Hundreds of submissions have since been received since the anonymous family published their call for the highly paid tutor, who must be "a uniquely qualified person".
Over the last few weeks, the advert has received attention throughout the press, with several asking why?
Forward-Thinking Method
The CEO, chief executive of a global tutoring firm, which is supporting the family in their quest, said that despite initial skepticism, he viewed the concept "forward-looking", and "innovative".
When he spoke with the family, he said they understood the atypical nature of their request, and how immature their son is.
But, they explained that they "preferred not to postpone any longer" to hire a tutor, as they had held off until their older child was five, and by that stage "cultural influence had already set in".
What exactly does the family refer to by "cultural predisposition"?
It's "comprehensive", the expert replied. "The manner you eat, how you speak".
He said the older sibling had absorbed "extremely delicate, non-verbal cues" from the family, and had assumed their cultural ways. The family told the consultant they did not want this pattern to recur with their younger child.
The strategy: To engage a English tutor, who must speak with standard English accent, to guide the baby right from the beginning.
Subtle Influence
"Much of the education at the outset here is rather acquired indirectly," said the expert.
It's through this subtle influence that the family are expecting the child will adopt the English characteristics they aim to impart.
He said the tutor had to be somebody who attended "the appropriate educational institutions – similar types of schools as the family hope to send their son to".
"The instructor must be the appropriate candidate, they'll be performing things they don't even know they're doing, just naturally," he commented.
Cost Not Relevant
The family told him the chosen tutor should preferably also have familiarity of or passion in equestrian activities, skiing, artistic pursuits and instrumental training so as to shape the child in a broad spectrum of hobbies.
More than that though, he explained the family desired 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 view, helping their son develop into a "UK sophisticate" will result in achievement and open doors.
"For all the rights and wrongs of that, because it's certainly a status symbol," he adds.
Yet, notwithstanding all this guidance in "Britishness", could the child adopt so-called cultural influence from the globally influenced family he is raised by regardless?
"Absolutely", replied Adam. "The parents understand this could fail, but they've merely embraced the perspective of, 'why not attempt it and let's go as early as we can', because the cost of it is not relevant," he stated.
Impractical
Several in the private teaching field who have these doubts.
An education leader, head and founder of an educational organization, who supplies personal educators, wrote that "the development of becoming bicultural, or actually, becoming oneself, is something that must be grown into, not designed."
Peter noted that he had relocated from the Far East to the UK at the age of seven, and had been raised understanding and living both cultures. He went on to study at the University of Cambridge.
"The concept that one individual can serve as a representation of Britishness, someone who can in some way impart the attributes of a UK sophisticate onto a one-year-old child, strikes me as optimistic and impractical," he wrote.
"Based on my background, employing a quintessentially British tutor from infancy will will not automatically achieve the outcome they desire.
"I never had that kind of mentor, and however I have been fortunate enough to live several of the experiences they hope for their son."
He added: "The fact is, self-identity should not be imposed from the external environment; it must be chosen, and it must be internally driven."
Purchasing UK Culture
Certainly, English culture is something Adam believes can be taught – and sold.
"I believe the reality that the global community regards us in this regard is something that we should be cherishing|valuing|appreciating
