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"A household located in north London is looking for an extraordinary and skilled instructor to support their smallest child on his early path to growing into an English gentleman."

Looking at this post, you might naturally overlook the term "initial stages" as simple an expression.

Yet, it might be the crucial element of this unique employment listing, as it aims to recruit a teacher for a 12-month-old.

Numerous of applications have since been sent in since the unidentified family published their search for the £180k-a-year tutor, who has to be "a uniquely qualified person".

During the past few weeks, the advert has gained notice throughout the news, with several questioning why?

Forward-Thinking Method

The CEO, CEO and founder of an education consultancy, which is supporting the family in their search, explained that in spite of early doubt, he considered the concept "far sighted", and "advanced".

When he spoke with the family, he mentioned they appreciated the atypical character of their demand, and how early in age their son is.

Nevertheless, they explained that they "didn't want to wait any longer" to get a tutor, as they had postponed until their older child was five, and by that stage "cultural bias had already become established".

What precisely does the family indicate by "cultural leaning"?

It's "comprehensive", Adam answered. "How you eat, the manner you speak".

He said the older sibling had absorbed "very nuanced, non-verbal cues" from the family, and had adopted their cultural habits. The family explained to him they hoped to prevent this pattern to recur with their new baby.

The intention: To bring in a British tutor, who needs to speak with Received Pronunciation, to guide the baby from the very start.

Osmotic Learning

"A lot of the education at the start here is somewhat acquired indirectly," explained the CEO.

It's via this subtle influence that the family are expecting the child will acquire the British traits they wish to instil.

Adam said the tutor needed to be someone who studied at "the right kinds of schools – comparable categories of schools as the family plan to send their son to".

"The tutor just has to be the suitable individual, they'll be performing things they don't even know they're doing, just naturally," he commented.

Cost Not Relevant

The family informed Adam the successful candidate should ideally also have familiarity of or enthusiasm in riding, alpine skiing, artistic pursuits and instrumental training so as to influence the child in a diverse set of passions.

More than that though, he said the family hoped the tutor to enrol the child on a range of courses so the child would be "horseback riding and picking up an musical instrument by the time they are around three years old".

In the family's view, guiding their son grow into a "UK sophisticate" will result in achievement and create opportunities.

"Taking into account the advantages and disadvantages of that, because it's undoubtedly a status symbol," he adds.

Yet, notwithstanding all this tutelage in "English culture", could the child absorb so-called cultural influence from the multicultural family he is raised by regardless?

"Yes", said Adam. "They realize this may not work, but they've just taken the view of, 'why not attempt it and let's go as soon as we can', because the cost of it is irrelevant," he stated.

Idealistic and Unrealistic

There are some in the private teaching field who share similar doubts.

An education leader, head and founder of an educational organization, who provides private tutors, stated that "the development of adopting dual cultures, or actually, forming one's identity, is something that must be lived into, not designed."

He explained that he had relocated from the Far East to the Britain at the period of childhood, and had been raised experiencing and living dual heritages. He went on to be educated at the University of Cambridge.

"The concept that a single person can act as a representation of Britishness, someone who can possibly transfer the qualities of a UK sophisticate to a infant child, seems to me idealistic and unfeasible," he commented.

"From my perspective, having a quintessentially English tutor from babyhood will will not automatically produce the result they want.

"I wasn't provided with such a figure, and nevertheless I have been privileged enough to live many of the opportunities they aspire for their son."

He continued: "The truth is, self-identity should not be forced from the external environment; it must be selected, and it must be internally driven."

Purchasing UK Culture

Naturally, English culture is something Adam hopes can be educated – and commercialized.

"I think the fact that the international society holds us in this regard is something that we should be cherishing|valuing|appreciating