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"A household located in North London is looking for an remarkable and experienced tutor to assist their smallest child on his early path to turning into an English gentleman."

Looking at this listing, you might naturally miss the phrase "beginning" as just a turn of phrase.

Yet, it may be the most significant part of this unique job advert, as it aims to find a teacher for a infant.

Many of applications have since been sent in since the anonymous family posted their search for the highly paid tutor, who must be "someone very special".

Over the last few weeks, the post has gained interest across the press, with several questioning why?

Progressive Approach

A tutoring expert, head and founder of a global tutoring firm, which is supporting the family in their hunt, explained that notwithstanding initial scepticism, he viewed the plan "forward-looking", and "innovative".

When he consulted the family, he mentioned they recognized the atypical character of their demand, and how early in age their son is.

Nevertheless, they stated that they "were unwilling to delay any longer" to engage a tutor, as they had held off until their elder sibling was five, and by that point "cultural influence had already set in".

What exactly did the family indicate by "cultural bias"?

It's "everything", he replied. "How you eat, how you speak".

He said the elder child had absorbed "really subtle, unspoken signals" from the family, and had taken on their cultural habits. The family told Adam they hoped to prevent this pattern to happen again with their infant.

The plan: To bring in a English tutor, who must speak with RP, to influence the baby right from the beginning.

Osmotic Learning

"Much of the learning at the beginning here is kind of absorbed naturally," stated Adam.

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

He explained the tutor needed to be somebody who attended "the appropriate educational institutions – similar types of schools as the family aspire to send their son to".

"The instructor just has to be the appropriate candidate, they'll be doing things they don't even know they're doing, simply by nature," he said.

Cost Not Relevant

The family informed the expert the chosen tutor should ideally also have familiarity of or passion in equestrian activities, alpine skiing, artistic pursuits and musical activities so as to influence the child in a diverse set of hobbies.

Furthermore though, he stated the family wanted the tutor to sign up the child on a selection of classes so the child would be "horseback riding and picking up an instrument by the time they are approximately three years old".

In the family's perspective, guiding their son develop into a "UK sophisticate" will lead to achievement and open doors.

"Considering the advantages and disadvantages of that, because it's certainly a status symbol," he comments.

But, despite all this guidance in "English culture", would the child pick up what is termed cultural leaning from the multicultural family he lives with in any case?

"Absolutely", said Adam. "They understand this could fail, but they've merely embraced the view of, 'we should try and we should start as quickly as we can', because the price of it is irrelevant," he said.

Idealistic and Unrealistic

There are some in the tutoring industry who have those reservations.

Another CEO, head and founder of Blue Education, who supplies personal educators, stated that "the process of embracing two identities, or in fact, forming one's identity, is something that must be experienced personally, not manufactured."

Peter explained that he had moved from the Far East to the UK at the age of childhood, and had been brought up experiencing and embodying two backgrounds. He continued to be educated at the University of Cambridge.

"The concept that one individual can function as a representation of Britishness, someone who can possibly impart the characteristics of a English gentleman onto a one-year-old child, appears idealistic and impractical," he commented.

"Based on my background, engaging a distinctly British tutor from early childhood will does not necessarily produce the result they want.

"I never had that kind of mentor, and however I have been fortunate enough to enjoy numerous of the situations they hope for their son."

He continued: "The reality is, self-identity cannot be forced from the external environment; it must be chosen, and it must be internally driven."

Buying Britishness

Of course, Britishness is something the expert thinks can be instructed – and commercialized.

"I believe the situation that the world views us in this regard is something that we should be cherishing|valuing|appreciating