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"A household residing in North London seeks an exceptional and experienced instructor to assist their most junior child on his initial journey to becoming an English gentleman."

Looking at this post, you might readily miss the term "initial stages" as just an expression.

Yet, it could be the most important part of this distinctive job advert, as it aims to hire a mentor for a infant.

Hundreds of responses have already been received since the unidentified family advertised their call for the £180k-a-year tutor, who must be "a uniquely qualified person".

During the past few weeks, the listing has gained attention in the media, with several wondering why?

Innovative Idea

A tutoring expert, chief executive of a global tutoring firm, which is supporting the family in their search, said that in spite of first skepticism, he viewed the plan "forward-looking", and "progressive".

When he spoke with the family, he mentioned they appreciated the unconventional aspect of their requirement, and how immature their son is.

However, they explained that they "were unwilling to delay any longer" to get a tutor, as they had waited until their older child was five, and by that point "cultural conditioning had already become established".

What exactly does the family mean by "cultural bias"?

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

He said the older sibling had adopted "extremely delicate, non-verbal cues" from the family, and had taken on their cultural habits. The family informed Adam they hoped to prevent the same situation to recur with their new baby.

The intention: To engage a UK tutor, who should speak with standard English accent, to guide the baby from the very start.

Natural Absorption

"A lot of the learning at the outset here is somewhat absorbed naturally," stated Adam.

It's through this subtle influence that the family are expecting the child will adopt the UK customs they aim to impart.

He said the tutor must be somebody who attended "the appropriate educational institutions – comparable categories of schools as the family aspire to send their son to".

"The educator just has to be the appropriate candidate, they'll be performing things they may not realize they're doing, just naturally," he said.

Money No Object

The family informed the expert the successful candidate should preferably also have understanding of or interest in riding, winter sports, creative fields and music so as to shape the child in a wide range of hobbies.

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

In the family's perspective, assisting their son develop into a "British gentleman" will result in accomplishment and open doors.

"Considering the rights and wrongs of that, because it's definitely a status symbol," he notes.

But, notwithstanding all this instruction in "UK identity", would the child absorb what is termed cultural leaning from the multicultural family he is raised by anyway?

"Yes", said Adam. "The family realize this may not work, but they've simply adopted the view of, 'why not attempt it and we should start as soon as we can', because the expense of it is irrelevant," he explained.

Impractical

There are some in the private teaching field who express similar concerns.

Peter Cui, chief executive of a tutoring service, who supplies private tutors, commented that "the journey of adopting dual cultures, or indeed, forming one's identity, is something that must be grown into, not engineered."

The expert explained that he had moved from China to the Britain at the age of 7 years old, and had been educated understanding and practicing both cultures. He continued to study at a prestigious UK institution.

"The idea that an individual can function as a representation of Britishness, a person who can possibly transfer the attributes of a British gentleman to a infant child, strikes me as naive and unfeasible," he stated.

"Based on my background, engaging a distinctly UK tutor from babyhood will will not automatically produce the goal they want.

"I did not have such a figure, and yet I have been fortunate enough to enjoy numerous of the situations they aspire for their son."

He continued: "The reality is, personal identity can not be forced from the outside; it must be embraced, and it must be internally driven."

Acquiring Englishness

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

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