"A household residing in the northern part of London is looking for an exceptional and qualified educator to assist their youngest child on his early path to turning into an English gentleman."
When reading this advertisement, you might naturally miss the phrase "initial stages" as simple a turn of phrase.
But, it may be the most significant element of this unique job advert, as it attempts to hire a mentor for a one-year-old.
Hundreds of submissions have now been sent in since the unidentified family published their request for the £180k-a-year tutor, who must be "someone very special".
During the past few weeks, the post has attracted interest across the media, with numerous questioning why?
Forward-Thinking Method
The CEO, head and founder of Tutors International, which is helping the family in their search, explained that in spite of early skepticism, he viewed the plan "visionary", and "innovative".
When he consulted the family, he said they appreciated the unusual character of their requirement, and how early in age their son is.
But, they explained that they "preferred not to postpone any longer" to get a tutor, as they had held off until their elder sibling was five, and by that age "cultural conditioning had by then become established".
But what does the family refer to by "cultural predisposition"?
It's "all-encompassing", Adam responded. "The manner you eat, the manner you speak".
He explained the firstborn had absorbed "really subtle, unspoken signals" from the family, and had assumed their cultural ways. The family explained to the consultant they did not want this pattern to repeat itself with their new baby.
The plan: To hire a British tutor, who must speak with standard English accent, to influence the baby from day one.
Subtle Influence
"A lot of the development at the start here is kind of osmotic," said the expert.
It's through this subtle influence that the family are expecting the child will acquire the English characteristics they want to cultivate.
He explained the tutor needed to be an individual who went to "the right kinds of schools – comparable categories of schools as the family hope to send their son to".
"The tutor just has to be the right kind of person, they'll be performing things they may not realize they're doing, simply by nature," he commented.
Money No Object
The family told Adam the selected educator should ideally also have knowledge of or passion in horse riding, winter sports, artistic pursuits and instrumental training so as to shape the child in a diverse set of passions.
Additionally though, he stated the family wanted the tutor to enrol the child on a variety of lessons so the child would be "equestrian training and starting an musical instrument by the time they are around three years old".
In the family's perspective, helping their son develop into a "British gentleman" will result in accomplishment and open doors.
"Considering the rights and wrongs of that, because it's certainly a social class indicator," he notes.
However, notwithstanding all this guidance in "UK identity", would the child absorb what is termed cultural bias from the globally influenced family he lives with in any case?
"Certainly", said the CEO. "The family know this might not succeed, but they've just taken the perspective of, 'we should try and let's go as soon as we can', because the cost of it is not a concern," he explained.
Overly Optimistic
A number of in the tutoring industry who share those reservations.
Peter Cui, CEO and founder of an educational organization, who supplies individual instructors, stated that "the journey of becoming bicultural, or in fact, discovering oneself, is something that must be grown into, not engineered."
He wrote that he had moved from the Far East to the UK at the time of seven, and had been raised understanding and practicing both cultures. He progressed to learn at Cambridge University.
"The idea that an individual can function as a embodiment of English culture, a person who can in some way impart the attributes of a British gentleman upon a one-year-old child, seems to me idealistic and impractical," he stated.
"From my perspective, having a typically UK tutor from babyhood will does not automatically produce the result they hope for.
"I never had that kind of mentor, and yet I have been fortunate enough to experience several of the situations they hope for their son."
He continued: "The reality is, personal identity cannot be imposed from the external environment; it must be selected, and it must come from within."
Buying Britishness
Certainly, Britishness is something Adam believes can be instructed – and commercialized.
"I believe the situation that the global community views us in this light is something that we should be cherishing|valuing|appreciating
