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"A household located in the northern part of London wants to find an remarkable and skilled instructor to assist their most junior child on his first steps to growing into an English gentleman."

When reading this advertisement, you might readily miss the phrase "initial stages" as simple an expression.

But, it may be the crucial element of this unique employment listing, as it attempts to recruit a mentor for a infant.

Hundreds of submissions have since been sent in since the anonymous family published their request for the £180k-a-year tutor, who must be "an exceptional individual".

Over the last few weeks, the advert has attracted attention across the media, with many asking why?

Progressive Approach

Adam Caller, head and founder of Tutors International, which is assisting the family in their search, explained that despite initial scepticism, he considered the idea "forward-looking", and "advanced".

When he spoke with the family, he mentioned they recognized the unusual nature of their request, and how immature their son is.

But, they stated that they "were unwilling to delay any longer" to get a tutor, as they had held off until their older child was five, and by that age "cultural bias had by then set in".

But what does the family mean by "cultural leaning"?

It's "all-encompassing", the expert responded. "The manner you eat, the manner you speak".

He stated the older sibling had absorbed "very nuanced, body language" from the family, and had adopted their cultural habits. The family informed the consultant they did not want history to repeat itself with their younger child.

The plan: To bring in a UK tutor, who needs to speak with standard English accent, to guide the baby from the very start.

Natural Absorption

"A lot of the learning at the beginning here is somewhat osmotic," explained the CEO.

It's via this subtle influence that the family are aiming the child will pick up the UK customs they aim to impart.

He said the tutor must be somebody who studied at "the right kinds of schools – comparable categories of schools as the family hope to send their son to".

"The instructor simply needs to be the appropriate candidate, they'll be doing things they aren't even aware they're doing, simply by nature," he commented.

Cost Not Relevant

The family informed the expert the selected educator should ideally also have knowledge of or passion in equestrian activities, alpine skiing, the arts and music so as to inspire the child in a diverse set of passions.

Furthermore though, he stated the family hoped the tutor to register the child on a selection of lessons so the child would be "equestrian training and starting an instrument by the time they are about three years old".

In the family's minds, assisting their son develop into a "UK sophisticate" will bring about success and provide access.

"Taking into account the pros and cons of that, because it's certainly a status symbol," he notes.

However, in spite of all this guidance in "English culture", might the child pick up what is termed cultural influence from the international family he is raised by regardless?

"Yes", replied Adam. "The family understand this may not work, but they've just taken the attitude of, 'why not attempt it and we'll proceed as early as we can', because the expense of it is not relevant," he said.

Impractical

There are some in the tutoring industry who express these concerns.

Another CEO, chief executive of Blue Education, who also offer individual instructors, stated that "the process of embracing two identities, or indeed, discovering oneself, is something that must be lived into, not engineered."

He wrote that he had emigrated from the Far East to the United Kingdom at the period of childhood, and had been raised experiencing and embodying two backgrounds. He went on to study at the University of Cambridge.

"The concept that an individual can function as a embodiment of Britishness, a person who can in some way impart the attributes of a British gentleman upon a 12-month-old child, appears optimistic and unrealistic," he commented.

"From my perspective, engaging a typically UK tutor from babyhood will will not instantly achieve the outcome they hope for.

"I never had that kind of mentor, and yet I have been privileged enough to enjoy numerous of the opportunities they aspire for their son."

He stated: "The reality is, cultural identity cannot be forced from the outside; it must be selected, and it must be internally driven."

Buying Britishness

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

"In my view the fact that the global community views us in this regard is something that we should be cherishing|valuing|appreciating