"Parents based in the northern part of London seeks an exceptional and qualified instructor to assist their most junior child on his early path to growing into an British gentleman."
Upon seeing this post, you might readily skip the phrase "first-steps" as just an expression.
However, it might be the most significant element of this distinctive employment listing, as it attempts to hire a tutor for a 12-month-old.
Hundreds of submissions have since been received since the anonymous family published their call for the £180k-a-year tutor, who has to be "someone very special".
During the past few weeks, the listing has gained attention throughout the press, with numerous wondering why?
Progressive Approach
A tutoring expert, chief executive of an education consultancy, which is supporting the family in their hunt, said that in spite of early skepticism, he viewed the idea "forward-looking", and "innovative".
When he spoke with the family, he mentioned they recognized the atypical character of their requirement, and how young their son is.
But, they clarified that they "preferred not to postpone any longer" to get a tutor, as they had held off until their firstborn was five, and by that point "cultural bias had already set in".
But what does the family mean by "cultural leaning"?
It's "comprehensive", he answered. "The way you eat, the manner you speak".
He stated the firstborn had adopted "extremely delicate, unspoken signals" from the family, and had taken on their cultural habits. The family informed him they hoped to prevent history to repeat itself with their new baby.
The intention: To hire a British tutor, who should speak with standard English accent, to shape the baby from the very start.
Subtle Influence
"A lot of the learning at the beginning here is somewhat osmotic," stated Adam.
It's via this subtle influence that the family are hoping the child will pick up the UK customs they wish to instil.
The consultant noted the tutor had to be somebody who went to "the appropriate educational institutions – comparable categories of schools as the family plan to send their son to".
"The tutor must be the right kind of person, they'll be doing things they aren't even aware they're doing, effortlessly," he commented.
Cost Not Relevant
The family told the expert the chosen tutor should ideally also have understanding of or passion in riding, skiing, creative fields and instrumental training so as to influence the child in a wide range of interests.
More than that though, he stated the family wanted the tutor to enrol the child on a selection of courses so the child would be "pony-riding and learning an tool by the time they are about three years old".
In the family's minds, helping their son become a "British gentleman" will lead to accomplishment and open doors.
"Taking into account the rights and wrongs of that, because it's definitely a social class indicator," he comments.
But, notwithstanding all this tutelage in "UK identity", might the child absorb alleged cultural bias from the globally influenced family he is raised by in any case?
"Certainly", replied Adam. "The parents realize this could fail, but they've just taken the perspective of, 'why not attempt it and let's go as soon as we can', because the price of it is not relevant," he said.
Impractical
There are some in the education sector who express similar doubts.
Another CEO, head and founder of an educational organization, who provides private tutors, commented that "the process of adopting dual cultures, or indeed, becoming oneself, is something that must be lived into, not designed."
The expert wrote that he had relocated from the Far East to the United Kingdom at the time of childhood, and had been educated understanding and embodying two backgrounds. He progressed to be educated at Cambridge University.
"The notion that a single person can act as a living vessel of English culture, an individual who can possibly transfer the attributes of a UK sophisticate upon a 12-month-old child, appears naive and unfeasible," he stated.
"In my experience, engaging a quintessentially British tutor from infancy will not necessarily achieve the goal they hope for.
"I wasn't provided with such a figure, and however I have been privileged enough to experience many of the experiences they aspire for their son."
He continued: "The truth is, cultural identity cannot be dictated from the external environment; it must be selected, and it must be internally driven."
Buying Britishness
Certainly, Britishness is something the CEO hopes can be taught – and marketed.
"In my view the reality that the world holds us in this regard is something that we should be cherishing|valuing|appreciating
