Educating a Toddler to Become an 'British Gentleman' – Is It Worth the Money?

Child education concept
The firm responsible for the advertisement claims that what looks like "extravagance or oddity" is truly "intentional investment in early-stage learning".

"A household based in the northern part of London seeks an exceptional and skilled instructor to assist their most junior child on his early path to growing into an English gentleman."

When reading this post, you might naturally miss the term "first-steps" as mere a turn of phrase.

Yet, it might be the most significant aspect of this unique job advert, as it attempts to find a teacher for a 12-month-old.

Many of submissions have already been submitted since the anonymous family published their call for the highly paid tutor, who must be "an exceptional individual".

In recent few weeks, the listing has attracted notice throughout the news, with many asking why?

Innovative Idea

A tutoring expert, CEO and founder of a global tutoring firm, which is supporting the family in their hunt, said that notwithstanding first scepticism, he viewed the concept "far sighted", and "progressive".

When he met the family, he mentioned they understood the unconventional aspect of their demand, and how young their son is.

But, they clarified that they "preferred not to postpone any longer" to hire a tutor, as they had postponed until their firstborn was five, and by that age "cultural conditioning had by then set in".

What precisely does the family refer to by "cultural bias"?

It's "all-encompassing", Adam answered. "How you eat, the manner you speak".

He stated the firstborn had adopted "extremely delicate, non-verbal cues" from the family, and had adopted their cultural ways. The family explained to Adam they did not want this pattern to happen again with their infant.

The strategy: To engage a English tutor, who should speak with Received Pronunciation, to shape the baby right from the beginning.

Tutoring discussion
The education firm state the post has sparked a larger debate about how families perceive schooling, privilege and the role of family background in education.

Osmotic Learning

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

It's through this natural absorption that the family are aiming the child will pick up the British traits they want to cultivate.

Adam explained the tutor needed to be someone who went to "the right kinds of schools – similar types of schools as the family aspire to send their son to".

"The educator just has to be the right kind of person, they'll be performing things they may not realize they're doing, just naturally," he added.

Cost Not Relevant

The family told him the successful candidate should ideally also have knowledge of or interest in riding, alpine skiing, creative fields and instrumental training so as to shape the child in a broad spectrum of hobbies.

Additionally though, he said the family wanted the tutor to register the child on a variety of courses so the child would be "horseback riding and starting an musical instrument by the time they are about three years old".

In the family's view, assisting their son grow into a "English gentleman" will result in accomplishment and create opportunities.

"Taking into account the advantages and disadvantages of that, because it's undoubtedly a class statement," he notes.

However, in spite of all this instruction in "Britishness", could the child pick up alleged cultural influence from the multicultural family he is raised by anyway?

"Absolutely", replied the CEO. "The parents understand this may not work, but they've simply adopted the attitude of, 'we should try and let's go as quickly as we can', because the price of it is not a concern," he said.

Impractical

Several in the education sector who have these concerns.

An education leader, CEO 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 lived into, not manufactured."

The expert wrote that he had emigrated from China to the UK at the period of childhood, and had been educated knowing and practicing two backgrounds. He went on to be educated at Cambridge University.

Peter Cui portrait
Peter Cui was the pioneer born in the People's Republic of China to be chosen to the role of Finance Head of the Cambridge Union.

"The idea that one individual can serve as a embodiment of UK identity, someone who can somehow transfer the characteristics of a English gentleman upon a infant child, strikes me as idealistic and unfeasible," he wrote.

"In my experience, having a distinctly UK tutor from early childhood will not instantly achieve the outcome they desire.

"I did not have such a tutor, and yet I have been lucky enough to enjoy many of the opportunities they aspire for their son."

He added: "The fact is, personal identity should not be forced from the external environment; it must be embraced, and it must come from within."

Buying Britishness

Certainly, UK identity is something the expert thinks can be taught – and commercialized.

"In my view the reality that the international society views us in this regard is something that we should be cherishing|valuing|appreciating

Sarah Johnson
Sarah Johnson

A seasoned poker player and strategist with over a decade of experience in online tournaments and cash games.