"Parents residing in north London is looking for an extraordinary and skilled educator to guide their youngest child on his early path to growing into an British gentleman."
Looking at this advertisement, you might easily overlook the term "first-steps" as simple figurative language.
Yet, it may be the crucial element of this unusual job advert, as it seeks to hire a teacher for a 12-month-old.
Numerous of applications have already been submitted since the anonymous family advertised their search for the highly paid tutor, who needs to be "someone very special".
During the past few weeks, the listing has attracted notice across the news, with several questioning why?
Progressive Approach
The CEO, chief executive of Tutors International, which is assisting the family in their quest, said that despite early skepticism, he found the plan "forward-looking", and "innovative".
When he met the family, he noted they recognized the unusual character of their requirement, and how young their son is.
But, they explained 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 point "cultural conditioning had by then become established".
What precisely does the family mean by "cultural leaning"?
It's "all-encompassing", Adam answered. "How you eat, the manner you speak".
He said the elder child had absorbed "very nuanced, non-verbal cues" from the family, and had adopted their cultural habits. The family told him they wished to avoid this pattern to happen again with their younger child.
The intention: To hire a British tutor, who needs to speak with standard English accent, to guide the baby from day one.
Natural Absorption
"A lot of the learning at the start here is rather absorbed naturally," explained Adam.
It's through this natural absorption that the family are aiming the child will acquire the British traits they want to instil.
The consultant noted the tutor needed to be somebody who studied at "the right kinds of schools – similar types of schools as the family hope to send their son to".
"The educator must be the right kind of person, they'll be performing things they may not realize they're doing, effortlessly," he said.
Expense Not a Factor
The family explained to Adam the selected educator should ideally also have knowledge of or interest in riding, skiing, creative fields and instrumental training so as to inspire the child in a wide range of hobbies.
Additionally though, he stated the family desired the tutor to register the child on a variety of lessons so the child would be "horseback riding and learning an instrument by the time they are around three years old".
In the family's perspective, guiding their son develop into a "UK sophisticate" will result in achievement and provide access.
"Considering the advantages and disadvantages of that, because it's certainly a status symbol," he comments.
Yet, in spite of all this guidance in "Britishness", might the child adopt so-called cultural influence from the multicultural family he resides with regardless?
"Yes", said the CEO. "The parents understand this could fail, but they've merely embraced the attitude of, 'we should try and we should start as early as we can', because the expense of it is not a concern," he stated.
Overly Optimistic
There are some in the education sector who have those concerns.
Peter Cui, head and founder of Blue Education, who also offer personal educators, stated that "the journey of embracing two identities, or in fact, discovering oneself, is something that must be experienced personally, not manufactured."
He explained that he had moved from Asia to the UK at the age of childhood, and had been educated understanding and practicing both cultures. He went on to learn at a prestigious UK institution.
"The idea that an individual can function as a living vessel of Britishness, a person who can in some way transplant the attributes of a English gentleman upon a 12-month-old child, appears naive and unfeasible," he wrote.
"From my perspective, employing a distinctly English tutor from infancy will not instantly produce the goal they desire.
"I never had such a figure, and however I have been privileged enough to enjoy many of the opportunities they hope for their son."
He added: "The truth is, cultural identity can not be forced from the outside influences; it must be embraced, and it must originate internally."
Purchasing UK Culture
Of course, Britishness is something Adam hopes can be educated – and sold.
"I think the situation that the international society holds us in this respect is something that we should be cherishing|valuing|appreciating
