"A family residing in north London seeks an extraordinary and qualified educator to assist their most junior child on his initial journey to growing into an English gentleman."
Upon seeing this post, you might readily overlook the wording "first-steps" as just a turn of phrase.
But, it may be the most important element of this unusual employment listing, as it aims to find a teacher for a infant.
Many of responses have already been received since the unnamed family posted their call for the highly paid tutor, who has to be "an exceptional individual".
In recent few weeks, the advert has received notice in the press, with many questioning why?
Forward-Thinking Method
Adam Caller, head and founder of an education consultancy, which is supporting the family in their hunt, said that despite initial doubt, he considered the plan "forward-looking", and "innovative".
When he met the family, he said they appreciated the unconventional aspect of their requirement, and how young 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 firstborn was five, and by that stage "cultural bias had already taken hold".
What exactly does the family mean by "cultural bias"?
It's "comprehensive", he replied. "The way you eat, the manner you speak".
He stated the elder child had adopted "very nuanced, unspoken signals" from the family, and had taken on their cultural ways. The family explained to him they did not want this pattern to repeat itself with their younger child.
The strategy: To bring in a British tutor, who needs to speak with standard English accent, to guide the baby from the very start.
Osmotic Learning
"A great deal of the education at the start here is kind of acquired indirectly," stated the expert.
It's via this natural absorption that the family are aiming the child will pick up the UK customs they wish to impart.
He explained the tutor must be somebody who attended "the appropriate educational institutions – comparable categories of schools as the family plan to send their son to".
"The instructor just has to be the suitable individual, they'll be performing things they may not realize they're doing, just naturally," he commented.
Cost Not Relevant
The family explained to Adam the selected educator should ideally also have understanding of or passion in equestrian activities, winter sports, creative fields and instrumental training so as to shape the child in a diverse set of interests.
Additionally though, he stated the family desired the tutor to enrol the child on a variety of courses so the child would be "horseback riding and learning an musical instrument by the time they are approximately three years old".
In the family's perspective, guiding their son develop into a "English gentleman" will lead to accomplishment and create opportunities.
"Taking into account the advantages and disadvantages of that, because it's certainly a class statement," he adds.
Yet, despite all this guidance in "Britishness", would the child absorb alleged cultural leaning from the globally influenced family he lives with in any case?
"Yes", said the CEO. "They understand this may not work, but they've just taken the view of, 'why not attempt it and we'll proceed as quickly as we can', because the expense of it is irrelevant," he said.
Idealistic and Unrealistic
Several in the education sector who express similar doubts.
An education leader, CEO and founder of a tutoring service, who provides individual instructors, wrote that "the process of embracing two identities, or in fact, forming one's identity, is something that must be grown into, not designed."
He noted that he had moved from China to the UK at the time of childhood, and had been raised understanding and practicing two backgrounds. He went on to learn at the University of Cambridge.
"The idea that an individual can act as a living vessel of English culture, an individual who can in some way transplant the attributes of a UK sophisticate to a infant child, strikes me as idealistic and unrealistic," he commented.
"From my perspective, engaging a typically UK tutor from early childhood will will not necessarily achieve the outcome they desire.
"I wasn't provided with such a figure, and nevertheless I have been lucky enough to experience several of the opportunities they desire for their son."
He added: "The fact is, personal identity should not be forced from the outside influences; it must be embraced, and it must come from within."
Buying Britishness
Certainly, UK identity is something the CEO believes can be educated – and sold.
"I think the situation that the global community views us in this light is something that we should be cherishing|valuing|appreciating
