"A family located in North London seeks an exceptional and qualified tutor to assist their smallest child on his early path to turning into an British gentleman."
Upon seeing this advertisement, you might naturally miss the term "first-steps" as just an expression.
However, it might be the most significant element of this unique position posting, as it attempts to find a mentor for a 12-month-old.
Numerous of responses have since been received since the unnamed family published their search for the £180,000 per year tutor, who must be "a uniquely qualified person".
During the past few weeks, the post has gained notice throughout the press, with several questioning why?
Innovative Idea
Adam Caller, chief executive of a global tutoring firm, which is assisting the family in their search, said that despite first scepticism, he found the plan "forward-looking", and "innovative".
When he consulted the family, he noted they appreciated the atypical character of their requirement, and how early in age their son is.
But, they clarified that they "preferred not to postpone any longer" to get a tutor, as they had postponed until their elder sibling was five, and by that point "cultural conditioning had already become established".
But what did the family indicate by "cultural predisposition"?
It's "comprehensive", Adam replied. "The way you eat, the way you speak".
He said the elder child had picked up "very nuanced, non-verbal cues" from the family, and had adopted their cultural habits. The family explained to him they did not want history to recur with their new baby.
The intention: To engage a UK tutor, who needs to speak with Received Pronunciation, to influence the baby from the very start.
Osmotic Learning
"A lot of the education at the start here is rather acquired indirectly," said the expert.
It's via this osmosis that the family are expecting the child will acquire the British traits they want to cultivate.
The consultant noted the tutor had to be an individual who attended "the appropriate educational institutions – comparable categories of schools as the family plan to send their son to".
"The educator simply needs to be the right kind of person, they'll be carrying out things they aren't even aware they're doing, effortlessly," he commented.
Expense Not a Factor
The family explained to him the chosen tutor should ideally also have understanding of or interest in riding, skiing, artistic pursuits and music so as to shape the child in a diverse set of interests.
More than that though, he said the family wanted the tutor to sign up the child on a range of classes so the child would be "pony-riding and starting an instrument by the time they are around three years old".
In the family's minds, guiding their son grow into a "English gentleman" will lead to achievement and open doors.
"For all the pros and cons of that, because it's certainly a status symbol," he adds.
But, in spite of all this guidance in "English culture", could the child pick up what is termed cultural leaning from the multicultural family he lives with regardless?
"Certainly", answered he. "The parents know this could fail, but they've merely embraced the attitude of, 'let's give it a go and we should start as early as we can', because the price of it is not relevant," he said.
Overly Optimistic
Several in the private teaching field who share those doubts.
Peter Cui, chief executive of Blue Education, who supplies individual instructors, wrote that "the development of becoming bicultural, or indeed, becoming oneself, is something that must be experienced personally, not designed."
Peter explained that he had moved from China to the United Kingdom at the period of 7 years old, and had been brought up experiencing and embodying two backgrounds. He went on to study at a prestigious UK institution.
"The notion that one individual can act as a representation of English culture, someone who can in some way transfer the qualities of a English gentleman to a one-year-old child, appears naive and impractical," he commented.
"In my experience, having a distinctly UK tutor from infancy will will not instantly achieve the result they want.
"I wasn't provided with that kind of mentor, and yet I have been lucky enough to live numerous of the opportunities they hope for their son."
He added: "The reality is, self-identity should not be imposed from the outside; it must be chosen, and it must come from within."
Acquiring Englishness
Certainly, UK identity is something the CEO believes can be taught – and marketed.
"I believe the reality that the international society regards us in this respect is something that we should be cherishing|valuing|appreciating
