Coaching a Baby to Develop into an 'British Gentleman' – Does It Justify the Investment?
"Parents based in the northern part of London wants to find an remarkable and qualified educator to guide their youngest child on his initial journey to turning into an British gentleman."
When reading this advertisement, you might readily miss the phrase "initial stages" as just figurative language.
But, it may be the most important aspect of this unique job advert, as it attempts to find a mentor for a 12-month-old.
Numerous of submissions have since been sent in since the anonymous family advertised their request for the £180,000 per year tutor, who has to be "someone very special".
In recent few weeks, the post has gained attention in the media, with numerous wondering why?
Forward-Thinking Method
The CEO, CEO and founder of an education consultancy, which is helping the family in their quest, explained that in spite of early scepticism, he viewed the concept "forward-looking", and "innovative".
When he spoke with the family, he said they appreciated the unusual nature of their request, and how immature their son is.
Nevertheless, they stated that they "didn't want to wait any longer" to engage a tutor, as they had held off until their firstborn was five, and by that stage "cultural influence had by then set in".
What exactly did the family refer to by "cultural leaning"?
It's "all-encompassing", he answered. "The way you eat, the manner you speak".
He explained the elder child had adopted "very nuanced, non-verbal cues" from the family, and had adopted their cultural ways. The family informed the consultant they wished to avoid the same situation to happen again with their infant.
The strategy: To engage a British tutor, who needs to speak with Received Pronunciation, to shape the baby from day one.
Osmotic Learning
"A great deal of the learning at the start here is somewhat acquired indirectly," stated Adam.
It's via this subtle influence that the family are hoping the child will adopt the UK customs they aim to impart.
Adam said the tutor needed to be somebody who attended "the right kinds of schools – comparable categories of schools as the family hope to send their son to".
"The instructor must be the suitable individual, they'll be doing things they may not realize they're doing, just naturally," he added.
Expense Not a Factor
The family explained to the expert the chosen tutor should preferably also have understanding of or passion in riding, winter sports, artistic pursuits and instrumental training so as to inspire the child in a broad spectrum of hobbies.
Additionally though, he stated the family hoped the tutor to sign up the child on a variety of courses so the child would be "pony-riding and picking up an tool by the time they are about three years old".
In the family's minds, guiding their son grow into a "UK sophisticate" will result in success and create opportunities.
"Taking into account the pros and cons of that, because it's undoubtedly a class statement," he adds.
Yet, notwithstanding all this instruction in "Britishness", might the child adopt what is termed cultural influence from the globally influenced family he lives with in any case?
"Certainly", replied Adam. "The parents realize this could fail, but they've simply adopted the view of, 'why not attempt it and we'll proceed as early as we can', because the price of it is not a concern," he explained.
Impractical
There are some in the education sector who express those concerns.
An education leader, head and founder of an educational organization, who provides personal educators, stated that "the process of becoming bicultural, or indeed, becoming oneself, is something that must be experienced personally, not designed."
He wrote that he had moved from the Far East to the United Kingdom at the age of seven, and had been educated experiencing and practicing dual heritages. He progressed to learn at Cambridge University.
"The notion that an individual can function as a representation of UK identity, an individual who can somehow transfer the characteristics of a English gentleman to a infant child, seems to me naive and unrealistic," he wrote.
"In my experience, engaging a typically English tutor from babyhood will not instantly create the outcome they desire.
"I never had that kind of mentor, and yet I have been privileged enough to experience many of the opportunities they hope for their son."
He added: "The fact is, cultural identity cannot be forced from the outside influences; it must be selected, and it must come from within."
Purchasing UK Culture
Certainly, UK identity is something the expert hopes can be instructed – and marketed.
"In my view the situation that the world views us in this regard is something that we should be cherishing|valuing|appreciating