"Parents residing in the northern part of London wants to find an extraordinary and experienced instructor to assist their most junior child on his early path to turning into an British gentleman."
When reading this post, you might naturally skip the wording "first-steps" as just an expression.
However, it could be the most important aspect of this unique position posting, as it attempts to recruit a mentor for a one-year-old.
Many of responses have since been submitted since the anonymous family published their call for the £180k-a-year tutor, who needs to be "someone very special".
During the past few weeks, the post has attracted interest across the press, with several questioning why?
Forward-Thinking Method
Adam Caller, chief executive of a global tutoring firm, which is helping the family in their search, explained that despite early skepticism, he viewed the concept "forward-looking", and "advanced".
When he consulted the family, he mentioned they appreciated the unconventional character of their requirement, and how early in age their son is.
However, they stated that they "didn't want to wait any longer" to hire a tutor, as they had waited until their firstborn was five, and by that stage "cultural influence had already taken hold".
But what does the family refer to by "cultural leaning"?
It's "all-encompassing", Adam responded. "The manner you eat, how you speak".
He stated the elder child had adopted "very nuanced, unspoken signals" from the family, and had assumed their cultural habits. The family informed the consultant they wished to avoid this pattern to happen again with their new baby.
The plan: To engage a English tutor, who should speak with RP, to shape the baby from day one.
Osmotic Learning
"Much of the development at the outset here is rather absorbed naturally," said the expert.
It's by means of this subtle influence that the family are expecting the child will pick up the British traits they want to impart.
The consultant explained the tutor had to be an individual who went to "prestigious academies – similar types of schools as the family hope to send their son to".
"The educator must be the suitable individual, they'll be doing things they don't even know they're doing, effortlessly," he commented.
Cost Not Relevant
The family told Adam the successful candidate should preferably also have familiarity of or passion in horse riding, winter sports, artistic pursuits and musical activities so as to inspire the child in a diverse set of hobbies.
More than that though, he said the family desired the tutor to enrol the child on a variety of classes so the child would be "equestrian training and learning an instrument by the time they are approximately three years old".
In the family's perspective, assisting their son develop into a "English gentleman" will result in success and provide access.
"For all the advantages and disadvantages of that, because it's definitely a social class indicator," he notes.
But, despite all this guidance in "Britishness", might the child absorb so-called cultural bias from the multicultural family he resides with in any case?
"Absolutely", said the CEO. "The parents realize this could fail, but they've merely embraced the attitude of, 'let's give it a go and we should start as quickly as we can', because the price of it is not relevant," he said.
Idealistic and Unrealistic
Several in the private teaching field who have those doubts.
Another CEO, chief executive of Blue Education, who provides individual instructors, wrote that "the development of becoming bicultural, or indeed, becoming oneself, is something that must be experienced personally, not designed."
Peter wrote that he had emigrated from the Far East to the UK at the time of 7 years old, and had been brought up knowing and living dual heritages. He progressed to study at Cambridge University.
"The notion that a single person can serve as a representation of UK identity, an individual who can in some way transplant the characteristics of a UK sophisticate upon a infant child, appears optimistic and unfeasible," he stated.
"From my perspective, engaging a quintessentially UK tutor from infancy will not automatically produce the outcome they hope for.
"I never had such a figure, and however I have been privileged enough to experience several of the experiences they desire for their son."
He added: "The fact is, cultural identity cannot be forced from the outside; it must be chosen, and it must be internally driven."
Purchasing UK Culture
Certainly, English culture is something Adam believes can be educated – and sold.
"In my view the situation that the world views us in this regard is something that we should be cherishing|valuing|appreciating
