"A family based in North London is looking for an exceptional and experienced tutor to guide their smallest child on his early path to growing into an English gentleman."
Upon seeing this listing, you might readily miss the term "beginning" as mere an expression.
But, it may be the most important part of this unusual job advert, as it aims to recruit a tutor for a infant.
Hundreds of applications have since been submitted since the unnamed family advertised their call for the £180,000 per year tutor, who has to be "a uniquely qualified person".
During the past few weeks, the post has received notice in the press, with many questioning why?
Innovative Idea
Adam Caller, head and founder of Tutors International, which is helping the family in their search, said that despite initial doubt, he considered the idea "forward-looking", and "advanced".
When he spoke with the family, he mentioned they recognized the unusual nature of their demand, and how immature their son is.
Nevertheless, they stated that they "didn't want to wait any longer" to engage a tutor, as they had held off until their elder sibling was five, and by that stage "cultural influence had already set in".
What exactly does the family refer to by "cultural predisposition"?
It's "everything", Adam responded. "The manner you eat, the way you speak".
He stated the elder child had picked up "very nuanced, body language" from the family, and had adopted their cultural habits. The family explained to Adam they wished to avoid this pattern to happen again with their infant.
The intention: To engage a British tutor, who must speak with standard English accent, to shape the baby right from the beginning.
Subtle Influence
"A great deal of the education at the start here is kind of acquired indirectly," said the CEO.
It's by means of this subtle influence that the family are aiming the child will adopt the English characteristics they aim to instil.
Adam said the tutor must be somebody who went to "the right kinds of schools – the same kinds 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 performing things they aren't even aware they're doing, simply by nature," he added.
Money No Object
The family told the expert the successful candidate should preferably also have knowledge of or interest in equestrian activities, skiing, the arts and musical activities so as to inspire the child in a wide range of hobbies.
Furthermore though, he stated the family wanted the tutor to register the child on a selection 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 develop into a "British gentleman" will bring about success and open doors.
"Considering the rights and wrongs of that, because it's certainly a social class indicator," he notes.
Yet, in spite of all this instruction in "English culture", would the child absorb so-called cultural influence from the globally influenced family he resides with anyway?
"Absolutely", replied the CEO. "The family know this could fail, but they've merely embraced the perspective of, 'let's give it a go and we'll proceed as early as we can', because the price of it is not a concern," he explained.
Idealistic and Unrealistic
There are some in the education sector who express these concerns.
An education leader, chief executive of a tutoring service, who supplies private tutors, stated that "the process of becoming bicultural, or actually, becoming oneself, is something that must be lived into, not designed."
He noted that he had relocated from China to the UK at the time of childhood, and had been raised experiencing and living dual heritages. He went on to study at the University of Cambridge.
"The concept that one individual can function as a representation of English culture, an individual who can in some way impart the qualities of a English gentleman onto a infant child, strikes me as naive and unrealistic," he stated.
"In my experience, employing a quintessentially UK tutor from early childhood will does not necessarily achieve the goal they hope for.
"I wasn't provided with such a tutor, and however I have been lucky enough to live many of the situations they aspire for their son."
He stated: "The reality is, personal identity can not be imposed from the outside influences; it must be embraced, and it must originate internally."
Purchasing UK Culture
Naturally, English culture is something the CEO hopes can be instructed – and commercialized.
"I believe the fact that the global community views us in this respect is something that we should be cherishing|valuing|appreciating
