"Parents residing in north London wants to find an extraordinary and experienced educator to support their youngest child on his first steps to growing into an British gentleman."
Looking at this post, you might easily miss the term "initial stages" as mere a turn of phrase.
But, it might be the crucial part of this distinctive job advert, as it aims to find a tutor for a one-year-old.
Many of applications have since been submitted since the unnamed family posted their request for the highly paid tutor, who needs to be "an exceptional individual".
During the past few weeks, the advert has received attention in the news, with many asking why?
Forward-Thinking Method
The CEO, chief executive of an education consultancy, which is helping the family in their quest, stated that despite initial scepticism, he viewed the plan "far sighted", and "progressive".
When he consulted the family, he mentioned they recognized the atypical nature of their demand, and how young their son is.
But, they stated that they "preferred not to postpone any longer" to hire a tutor, as they had postponed until their firstborn was five, and by that age "cultural influence had already become established".
What precisely does the family mean by "cultural leaning"?
It's "all-encompassing", the expert replied. "The manner you eat, the manner you speak".
He stated the elder child had absorbed "very nuanced, non-verbal cues" from the family, and had adopted their cultural habits. The family told Adam they did not want the same situation to recur with their younger child.
The plan: To hire a English tutor, who needs to speak with RP, to influence the baby from day one.
Subtle Influence
"A lot of the education at the outset here is kind of acquired indirectly," stated the expert.
It's via this osmosis that the family are aiming the child will adopt the British traits they aim to cultivate.
Adam said the tutor had to be someone who went to "the right kinds of schools – the same kinds of schools as the family hope to send their son to".
"The tutor just has to be the appropriate candidate, they'll be doing things they don't even know they're doing, simply by nature," he commented.
Money No Object
The family explained to the expert the successful candidate should preferably also have understanding of or enthusiasm in equestrian activities, alpine skiing, creative fields and instrumental training so as to shape the child in a broad spectrum of passions.
Additionally though, he said the family hoped the tutor to sign up the child on a range of courses so the child would be "pony-riding and learning an musical instrument by the time they are around three years old".
In the family's view, guiding their son grow into a "English gentleman" will bring about success and create opportunities.
"Considering the rights and wrongs of that, because it's definitely a status symbol," he notes.
But, in spite of all this tutelage in "English culture", could the child absorb so-called cultural influence from the multicultural family he lives with regardless?
"Absolutely", answered the CEO. "The parents know this might not succeed, but they've merely embraced the view of, 'why not attempt it and we should start as quickly as we can', because the expense of it is irrelevant," he stated.
Overly Optimistic
Several in the education sector who have these doubts.
An education leader, CEO and founder of an educational organization, who also offer private tutors, wrote that "the process of becoming bicultural, or actually, discovering oneself, is something that must be grown into, not designed."
He explained that he had relocated from China to the UK at the period of childhood, and had been brought up understanding and embodying both cultures. He progressed to study at the University of Cambridge.
"The idea that one individual can serve as a representation of UK identity, a person who can in some way impart the qualities of a British gentleman to a one-year-old child, strikes me as optimistic and impractical," he stated.
"In my experience, having a distinctly UK tutor from early childhood will not automatically create the goal they hope for.
"I never had such a tutor, and yet I have been fortunate enough to experience many of the experiences they desire for their son."
He continued: "The fact is, self-identity can not be dictated from the outside; it must be selected, and it must be internally driven."
Purchasing UK Culture
Certainly, UK identity is something the CEO hopes can be educated – and marketed.
"I think the situation that the global community regards us in this regard is something that we should be cherishing|valuing|appreciating
