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John Allen Downing
JOHN ALLEN DOWNING
Ph.D., D.Lit., F.A.P.A., F.C.P.A., F.B.Ps.S., F.R.S.A. On June 2, 1987, John Allen Downing succumbed to cancer and passed away in England at the age of 65. During his several months’ struggle with his illness, his thoughts were still very much with this book Cognitive Psychologv and Reading in the U.S.S.R., which had just gone to press after some ten years’ research. He had retired a year before as Professor of Psychological Foundations in Education at the University of Victoria in Canada and was a visiting professor at the Universite de Toulouse-le-Mirail in Toulouse, France. It was his fond hope that “retirement” from Victoria would give him more time for reflection and writing. Sadly, this was not to be. As colleagues and friends, w nourn his passing deeply. We shall not see his like again. As much as any onLperson can be so credited, he was a pioneer after William Gray in the study of comparative reading as a sub-field within the psychology of reading. It was within this context that I first met John Downing in 1970 in connection with his book Comparative Reading (1973). It is from the same vantage point, and with deep affection and thoughts of ennoblement, that I am privileged to write this short note. The other achievements of John Downing are documented elsewhere. Even though I have not read this manuscript, my collaboration over the years with John Downing in several projects and particularly our joint book Psychologv of Reading (1982) gives me considerable insight into his thinking and work. On a number of occasions we discussed the Soviet contribution to reading psychology: Vygotsky’s concept of language and thought and mind in society, Luria’s “glass theory” of language, Elkonin’s formulation of language access in reading, the work of Ushinsky, Redozubov, Egorov and others on reading education and pedagogy. As always, I was awed and elucidated by John Downing’s discourse within the broader framework of literacy. One of John Downing’s concerns was with children’s acquisition of literacy.
This led to his cognitive clarity theory and his writings on language awareness and learning to read. His other long-standing research interest in reading behavior in
different countries using different orthographies was pursued with equal vigor and rigor. He did these works both by precept and example. He had joint projects with researchers in different countries; he gave lectures, workshops or led study groups in America, Asia, Australia and New Zealand, Europe and the U.S.S.R. In the latter, he spent some time working with Daniel Borisovich Elkonin. His mastery of several languages (French, German and Spanish, in addition to Enghsh) was an asset
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J.A. Downing
in his comparative reading research and he was ably assisted by his wife Marianne and their family members. In a symposium in Panama City in 1971 his delivery of his paper in Spanish won him a standing ovation and long applause from the participants. He subsequently disclosed that he had been going to extension classes to brush up his Spanish for the occasion!
This resolve to get the job well done says much of John Downing the teacher, the scholar, and the researcher. It was with the same resolute spirit that he, with Marianne as research associate, made two extensive field trips in 1982 and 1985 to Papua New Guinea (PNG) to test his cognitive clarity theory of literacy acquisition in unschooled and schooled PNG children. The Downing and Downing reports provide insght into “bootstrap literacy” in preliterate societies. For all his work from English to the present volume with the Cyrillic orthography, it is fitting that John Downing was awarded the International Citation of Merit by the International Reading Association in 1984. One could go on to eulogize John Downing’s other qualities as a dedicated teacher, insightful scholar and researcher, thoughtful colleague and friend, and loving family man. In missing him, we do well to remember that: “His life was gentle, and the elements So mix‘d in him that nature might stand up And say to all the world, ‘Thiswas a man’! ” - Julius Caesar, Act V, Scene 5 CHE KAN LEONG, Professor Department for the Education of Exceptional Children University of Saksatchewan Saskatoon, Canada August, 1987
Ph.D., D.Lit., F.A.P.A., F.C.P.A., F.B.Ps.S., F.R.S.A. On June 2, 1987, John Allen Downing succumbed to cancer and passed away in England at the age of 65. During his several months’ struggle with his illness, his thoughts were still very much with this book Cognitive Psychologv and Reading in the U.S.S.R., which had just gone to press after some ten years’ research. He had retired a year before as Professor of Psychological Foundations in Education at the University of Victoria in Canada and was a visiting professor at the Universite de Toulouse-le-Mirail in Toulouse, France. It was his fond hope that “retirement” from Victoria would give him more time for reflection and writing. Sadly, this was not to be. As colleagues and friends, w nourn his passing deeply. We shall not see his like again. As much as any onLperson can be so credited, he was a pioneer after William Gray in the study of comparative reading as a sub-field within the psychology of reading. It was within this context that I first met John Downing in 1970 in connection with his book Comparative Reading (1973). It is from the same vantage point, and with deep affection and thoughts of ennoblement, that I am privileged to write this short note. The other achievements of John Downing are documented elsewhere. Even though I have not read this manuscript, my collaboration over the years with John Downing in several projects and particularly our joint book Psychologv of Reading (1982) gives me considerable insight into his thinking and work. On a number of occasions we discussed the Soviet contribution to reading psychology: Vygotsky’s concept of language and thought and mind in society, Luria’s “glass theory” of language, Elkonin’s formulation of language access in reading, the work of Ushinsky, Redozubov, Egorov and others on reading education and pedagogy. As always, I was awed and elucidated by John Downing’s discourse within the broader framework of literacy. One of John Downing’s concerns was with children’s acquisition of literacy.
This led to his cognitive clarity theory and his writings on language awareness and learning to read. His other long-standing research interest in reading behavior in
different countries using different orthographies was pursued with equal vigor and rigor. He did these works both by precept and example. He had joint projects with researchers in different countries; he gave lectures, workshops or led study groups in America, Asia, Australia and New Zealand, Europe and the U.S.S.R. In the latter, he spent some time working with Daniel Borisovich Elkonin. His mastery of several languages (French, German and Spanish, in addition to Enghsh) was an asset
x
J.A. Downing
in his comparative reading research and he was ably assisted by his wife Marianne and their family members. In a symposium in Panama City in 1971 his delivery of his paper in Spanish won him a standing ovation and long applause from the participants. He subsequently disclosed that he had been going to extension classes to brush up his Spanish for the occasion!
This resolve to get the job well done says much of John Downing the teacher, the scholar, and the researcher. It was with the same resolute spirit that he, with Marianne as research associate, made two extensive field trips in 1982 and 1985 to Papua New Guinea (PNG) to test his cognitive clarity theory of literacy acquisition in unschooled and schooled PNG children. The Downing and Downing reports provide insght into “bootstrap literacy” in preliterate societies. For all his work from English to the present volume with the Cyrillic orthography, it is fitting that John Downing was awarded the International Citation of Merit by the International Reading Association in 1984. One could go on to eulogize John Downing’s other qualities as a dedicated teacher, insightful scholar and researcher, thoughtful colleague and friend, and loving family man. In missing him, we do well to remember that: “His life was gentle, and the elements So mix‘d in him that nature might stand up And say to all the world, ‘Thiswas a man’! ” - Julius Caesar, Act V, Scene 5 CHE KAN LEONG, Professor Department for the Education of Exceptional Children University of Saksatchewan Saskatoon, Canada August, 1987