Educating an Infant to Develop into an 'British Gentleman' – Is It Worth the Cost?

Child education concept
The firm responsible for the listing claims that what seems like "extravagance or peculiarity" is actually "deliberate investment in early-stage instruction".

"Parents based in North London is looking for an extraordinary and experienced educator to assist their youngest child on his initial journey to growing into an English gentleman."

Looking at this advertisement, you might easily miss the phrase "beginning" as simple a turn of phrase.

However, it could be the most important aspect of this distinctive job advert, as it aims to hire a mentor for a one-year-old.

Numerous of submissions have now been submitted since the unnamed family posted their search for the £180,000 per year tutor, who must be "an exceptional individual".

Over the last few weeks, the listing has received notice in the press, with many questioning why?

Forward-Thinking Method

A tutoring expert, CEO and founder of an education consultancy, which is assisting the family in their hunt, stated that notwithstanding initial doubt, he viewed the idea "far sighted", and "progressive".

When he spoke with the family, he mentioned they understood the unconventional nature of their demand, and how young their son is.

Nevertheless, they stated that they "didn't want to wait any longer" to engage a tutor, as they had waited until their firstborn was five, and by that point "cultural conditioning had already taken hold".

But what does the family mean by "cultural bias"?

It's "everything", he replied. "The manner you eat, the manner you speak".

He explained the elder child had picked up "extremely delicate, non-verbal cues" from the family, and had taken on their cultural norms. The family informed Adam they did not want history to happen again with their younger child.

The plan: To hire a British tutor, who needs to speak with RP, to guide the baby from the very start.

Tutoring discussion
Tutors International claim the post has sparked a wider conversation about how parents perceive learning, elitism and the part of cultural environment in education.

Osmotic Learning

"A great deal of the learning at the outset here is rather acquired indirectly," stated the expert.

It's by means of this osmosis that the family are aiming the child will pick up the English characteristics they want to cultivate.

He explained the tutor must be an individual who attended "prestigious academies – the same kinds of schools as the family aspire to send their son to".

"The instructor simply needs to be the suitable individual, they'll be doing things they may not realize they're doing, effortlessly," he added.

Money No Object

The family explained to Adam the selected educator should ideally also have familiarity of or interest in horse riding, alpine skiing, artistic pursuits and musical activities so as to influence the child in a diverse set of interests.

Additionally though, he stated the family hoped the tutor to register the child on a selection of lessons so the child would be "horseback riding and learning an musical instrument by the time they are around three years old".

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

"Considering the pros and cons of that, because it's certainly a class statement," he notes.

However, in spite of all this instruction in "UK identity", would the child pick up what is termed cultural leaning from the international family he resides with in any case?

"Certainly", replied Adam. "The family know this may not work, but they've simply adopted the perspective of, 'we should try and we should start as quickly as we can', because the cost of it is not a concern," he stated.

Idealistic and Unrealistic

There are some in the education sector who express those concerns.

Another CEO, head and founder of an educational organization, who supplies personal educators, commented that "the journey of adopting dual cultures, or indeed, becoming oneself, is something that must be experienced personally, not manufactured."

He noted that he had moved from the Far East to the UK at the time of childhood, and had been raised experiencing and living both cultures. He progressed to be educated at Cambridge University.

Peter Cui portrait
The educator was the first person hailing from the People's Republic of China to be selected to the post of Finance Head of the Cambridge Union.

"The notion that a single person can function as a living vessel of Britishness, an individual who can possibly impart the qualities of a British gentleman onto a one-year-old child, strikes me as naive and impractical," he commented.

"In my experience, having a typically English tutor from babyhood will does not necessarily create the outcome they want.

"I did not have such a tutor, and nevertheless I have been lucky enough to experience numerous of the situations they aspire for their son."

He stated: "The truth is, self-identity should not be forced from the external environment; it must be chosen, and it must originate internally."

Buying Britishness

Naturally, Britishness is something the expert believes can be taught – and commercialized.

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

Holly Anderson
Holly Anderson

Mikael is a tech journalist with over a decade of experience covering software development and emerging technologies.