"A family residing in North London wants to find an exceptional and qualified tutor to assist their most junior child on his initial journey to becoming an British gentleman."
Upon seeing this advertisement, you might easily miss the wording "first-steps" as just a turn of phrase.
But, it may be the most important part of this distinctive position posting, as it seeks to hire a tutor for a 12-month-old.
Hundreds of responses have now been received since the unnamed family posted their search for the highly paid tutor, who has to be "an exceptional individual".
During the past few weeks, the advert has received notice across the press, with many asking why?
Progressive Approach
Adam Caller, CEO and founder of Tutors International, which is helping the family in their hunt, explained that in spite of initial doubt, he considered the concept "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.
Nevertheless, they stated that they "didn't want to wait any longer" to hire a tutor, as they had held off until their firstborn was five, and by that point "cultural bias had already set in".
What precisely does the family indicate by "cultural leaning"?
It's "comprehensive", he responded. "The manner you eat, the way you speak".
He explained the elder child had absorbed "really subtle, unspoken signals" from the family, and had assumed their cultural habits. The family told the consultant they did not want history to recur with their younger child.
The plan: To bring in a British tutor, who must speak with Received Pronunciation, to influence the baby right from the beginning.
Subtle Influence
"Much of the education at the start here is rather acquired indirectly," explained the expert.
It's through this natural absorption that the family are expecting the child will acquire the British traits they wish to impart.
Adam explained the tutor must be an individual who studied at "the right kinds of schools – similar types of schools as the family hope to send their son to".
"The instructor just has to be the appropriate candidate, they'll be doing things they may not realize they're doing, just naturally," he said.
Money No Object
The family told the expert the selected educator should ideally also have understanding of or enthusiasm in horse riding, skiing, creative fields and musical activities so as to inspire the child in a wide range of passions.
Additionally though, he explained the family hoped the tutor to enrol the child on a selection of courses so the child would be "pony-riding 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 bring about success and provide access.
"Taking into account the pros and cons of that, because it's definitely a class statement," he comments.
But, despite all this guidance in "UK identity", might the child absorb what is termed cultural bias from the globally influenced family he lives with in any case?
"Yes", answered he. "The family understand this might not succeed, but they've simply adopted the view of, 'we should try and let's go as quickly as we can', because the expense of it is irrelevant," he stated.
Overly Optimistic
A number of in the tutoring industry who express these concerns.
Peter Cui, head and founder of a tutoring service, who provides private tutors, commented that "the journey of adopting dual cultures, or in fact, forming one's identity, is something that must be experienced personally, not engineered."
He noted that he had relocated from China to the United Kingdom at the period of seven, and had been raised experiencing and practicing two backgrounds. He continued to be educated at Cambridge University.
"The notion that a single person can function as a embodiment of Britishness, a person who can somehow impart the qualities of a British gentleman onto a infant child, seems to me idealistic and unfeasible," he wrote.
"From my perspective, employing a distinctly UK tutor from babyhood will not necessarily produce the goal they want.
"I never had that kind of mentor, and nevertheless I have been lucky enough to live many of the opportunities they desire for their son."
He continued: "The fact is, self-identity cannot be imposed from the outside influences; it must be selected, and it must be internally driven."
Buying Britishness
Certainly, Britishness is something the CEO hopes can be educated – and commercialized.
"I think the situation that the world views us in this light is something that we should be cherishing|valuing|appreciating
