"A household based in North London wants to find an extraordinary and experienced instructor to guide their smallest child on his early path to turning into an British gentleman."
Upon seeing this listing, you might naturally miss the wording "first-steps" as simple a turn of phrase.
But, it might be the most important part of this distinctive job advert, as it seeks to find a teacher for a one-year-old.
Hundreds of applications have now been received since the unidentified family published their request for the £180k-a-year tutor, who needs to be "an exceptional individual".
During the past few weeks, the advert has received interest throughout the media, with numerous questioning why?
Forward-Thinking Method
A tutoring expert, CEO and founder of a global tutoring firm, which is supporting the family in their hunt, explained that in spite of initial scepticism, he considered the idea "visionary", and "advanced".
When he spoke with the family, he said they understood the atypical aspect of their requirement, and how young their son is.
But, they explained that they "were unwilling to delay any longer" to hire a tutor, as they had postponed until their elder sibling was five, and by that point "cultural bias had by then taken hold".
But what does the family refer to by "cultural bias"?
It's "comprehensive", Adam replied. "The manner you eat, the manner you speak".
He explained the elder child had absorbed "very nuanced, non-verbal cues" from the family, and had taken on their cultural ways. The family told the consultant they did not want history to recur with their younger child.
The intention: To bring in a English tutor, who must speak with RP, to shape the baby from day one.
Osmotic Learning
"A lot of the learning at the outset here is kind of acquired indirectly," explained the expert.
It's through this subtle influence that the family are aiming the child will acquire the English characteristics they want to impart.
The consultant said the tutor needed to be someone who studied at "prestigious academies – similar types of schools as the family hope to send their son to".
"The educator just has to be the appropriate candidate, they'll be doing things they don't even know they're doing, just naturally," he added.
Cost Not Relevant
The family informed him the selected educator should preferably also have familiarity of or passion in horse riding, winter sports, creative fields and instrumental training so as to inspire the child in a broad spectrum of interests.
Additionally though, he explained the family desired the tutor to sign up the child on a range of classes so the child would be "horseback riding and picking up an musical instrument by the time they are about three years old".
In the family's minds, guiding their son develop into a "UK sophisticate" will result in accomplishment and open doors.
"Taking into account the rights and wrongs of that, because it's undoubtedly a status symbol," he comments.
But, notwithstanding all this instruction in "Britishness", might the child absorb so-called cultural influence from the multicultural family he lives with anyway?
"Certainly", said he. "The parents realize this might not succeed, but they've simply adopted the attitude of, 'let's give it a go and let's go as quickly as we can', because the price of it is not a concern," he explained.
Overly Optimistic
There are some in the education sector who share those reservations.
Another CEO, chief executive of Blue Education, who provides private tutors, wrote that "the process of embracing two identities, or in fact, forming one's identity, is something that must be experienced personally, not designed."
The expert wrote that he had moved from the Far East to the UK at the time of seven, and had been educated knowing and embodying two backgrounds. He went on to study at a prestigious UK institution.
"The concept that one individual can function as a living vessel of UK identity, a person who can in some way transplant the attributes of a British gentleman to a one-year-old child, seems to me idealistic and unfeasible," he stated.
"Based on my background, having a distinctly English tutor from infancy will not instantly achieve the goal they want.
"I never had such a figure, and nevertheless I have been privileged enough to experience many of the situations they desire for their son."
He added: "The truth is, personal identity can not be dictated from the outside; it must be selected, and it must be internally driven."
Purchasing UK Culture
Of course, Britishness is something Adam believes can be instructed – and commercialized.
"I think the fact that the world views us in this respect is something that we should be cherishing|valuing|appreciating
