It is with deep sadness and sorrow that we inform you of the passing of Professor Che-Kan Leong (梁子勤教授), Distinguished Professor Emeritus, Educational Psychology and Special Education, University of Saskatchewan, Canada. Professor Leong passed away peacefully in Edmonton on 30 November 2020. On behalf of CACLER, we offer our sincere condolences to his family, especially to his children Sonia, Lawrence, and Daphne.
Professor Leong has lent unfailing support to our faculty in the area of Chinese language education for the past two decades. During this period, he served as external examiner of Chinese language education programmes including BEd, PGDE, and MEd, and provided invaluable input for the curriculum development of these courses. He also acted as external reviewer in the tenure and promotion exercises of many of our colleagues. As a member of RGC RAE Panel, he provided useful and insightful suggestions to guide the research direction of many colleagues. In addition, he served as internal reviewer of our colleagues’ GRF proposals and many were successfully funded because of his caring guidance. It is our great pleasure to have had many collaborations with him in the past twenty years.
Prof. Leong is inspirational, passionate, and dedicated to his profession. He will be remembered for his kindness, sense of humor, passion for research, and selfless devotion to nurturing young researchers. He is a wonderful friend and will be sorely missed.
You can learn more about Prof. Leong from the website developed by his family: https://www.forevermissed.com/ckleong/about
(From Professor A. Lin Goodwin, Dean, Faculty of Education, HKU)
I am sorry to convey the sad news that Professor Che-Kan Leong (梁子勤教授), Distinguished Professor Emeritus, Educational Psychology & Special Education, University of Saskatchewan, recently passed away in Canada. According to his daughter’s email to our colleagues, Professor Leong left peacefully with his family members around him.
Professor Leong was a close friend and frequent visitor to this Faculty. He provided helpful and generous guidance to colleagues in many aspects, from curriculum development, grant proposal writing, research publications, preparation for the RAE, to academic career development. In the past two decades, he served as external examiner of our various programmes on Chinese Language Education, internal reviewer of GRF/ECS proposals, as well as RAE advisor. Given his wide range of research expertise spanning across language, psychology, special education, and early childhood education, many of our colleagues benefited from his insightful advice.
I am sure many of you will continue to hold very fond memories of Professor Leong’s kindness, particularly his caring support to early career researchers. May he rest in peace.
Lin
(From Dr. Mark Shiu-kee Shum, Former Head of Division of Chinese Language & Literature, Faculty of Education, HKU)
With deepest sorrow, I was told that Professor Che-Kan Leong (梁子勤教授) passed away peacefully in Edmonton this morning, and his dear children Sonia, Lawrence and Daphne were with him.
Professor Leong lent unfailing support to Chinese language education in our faculty for the past two decades. During the period, he served as external examiner of our various Chinese language education programmes including BEd, PGDE, MEd etc and provided precious input to guide the curriculum development of these courses. He also acted as external reviewer to support the tenure and promotion exercises of many of our colleagues. As a member of RGC RAE Panel, he provided valuable insights to guide the research direction of many colleagues. Besides, he also served as internal reviewer of our colleagues’ GRF proposals and many were successfully funded because of his caring guidance. In summary, in the past twenty years, he has done a lot for us and we owe him a lot.
Now we lost a dear friend. I shall pass the condolences to his family and wish him rest in peace!
Mark
(From Dr. Doris Yin-kum Law, Former Head of Division of Chinese Language & Literature, Faculty of Education, HKU)
懷念梁子勤教授
梁教授是一位仁者和智者！他對年輕的學者，尤其關心，慷慨付出寶貴的時間，扶掖後進。梁教授八十多歲仍來香港大學探訪我們，幫助我們修訂GRF的硏究計劃，解決我們研究的難題。他不只跟我們切蹉學問，還談笑風生，暢談在加拿大的生活軼事。教授對香港中文教育的卓越貢獻，我們永誌不忘。
祝願梁教授主懷安息！
羅燕琴
(From Dr. KI Wing Wah, Founding Member of CMI Centre & Centre for Advancement of Chinese Language Education & Research)
梁子勤教授一生精彩貢獻良多桃李滿門，亦可以說是福壽雙全了，但我們對他的離世，卻真感到百般捨不得。我們從梁子勤教授身上得到了很多寶貴的東西。許多愉快共處如沐春風的時光仍恍如昨日。
我就是因為在1980年代，聽到他的演講認識到metalinguistic awareness的重要性。初期學生有否phonemic awareness察覺語音的結構，竟對長遠閱讀能力發展，尤其是分析和綜合的能力的發展，有重要影響，可以解釋到後者60% 的差異。當時的研究結果是有關英文的，可是受了梁教授的啟發，我們便開始研究中文方面是否也有相同之處。這一直影響了之後二十多年我們對中文教學的研究，包括 orthographic awareness 在中文閱讀方面的重要性，我們更結合了phenomenography 的變易學習理論，提出了 integrated perceptual learning approach of Chinese, 並以資訊科技支持學生對語言的結構和意義的關係的感悟。
梁教授一直關注我們的研究，並提供了許多鼓勵和寶貴的意見。當我們把研究對象，由香港華語孩子的中文一語學習，擴展至香港少數族裔非華語孩子的中文二語學習時，梁教授更親身到香港許多學校，與我們一起進行研究。他的治學認真仔細，事事親力親為，充滿對研究對象的關懷。他指出不能單滿足於單由理論出發的研究設計，必須親身到現場接觸學生，盡量了解他們的實際情況，並與研究助理仔細實地將過程試行。沒有這個基礎，單就數字作出解讀，就會容易流於主觀猜測。這種治學精神，深刻在我們記憶之中。
本人的博士論文，是研究非華語人士如何學習廣東話的聲調，也得蒙梁教授作為考官之一，雖然我的理論框架來自phenomenography，實驗和論述都比較複雜，和梁教授慣用的測試，反應時間以及 structural modelling 的方法很不相同，但他對我的論文仍然非常仔細地閱讀及批注。更令人感動的是，他竟是在醫院的病床上透過長途電話出席我的論文答辯考試的。事因他日前在大寒天堅持回大學工作，路上暈倒跌傷留院。他考慮病情仍未查明，未知何時出院，不想延誤我，於是決定答辯考試如期進行，在病床上透過長途電話向我提問。答辯考試當時，他身上還插著多條喉管。這大概是港大教育學院破天荒的事情。除了他強毅精神，他對後輩的愛護栽培，從來沒有架子，從來就像朋友一樣關愛，亦在這件事表露無遺，亦令我無限感恩。
祁永華
(From Dr. LAM Wai Ip, Associate Professor, Faculty of Education, HKU)
悼梁子勤教授：
何堪切切遠辭羣，
猶憶諄諄細論文。
四海會同存弟子，
原知淵識學唯勤。
——葦葉敬輓
(From Dr. Monique Toi Na LEE)
每當船航行於黑夜，若遇到燈塔照明，將引領船前行的方向。正如梁教授的出現，他像一盞明燈，照亮我的人生﹗
但願他在天家安息，我將永遠懷念他﹗
黛娜敬輓
(From Dr. WONG Man Ying, Assistant Professor, The Open University of Hong Kong)
梁教授：
謝謝你的教導和啟發。
Manying
(From Dr. LAM Ho Cheong, Assistant Professor, The Education University of Hong Kong)
Sorry to hear that Prof. Leong has passed away. I really enjoy my discussion with him.
Ho Cheong
(From Vivian Chau, CACLER)
梁教授治學嚴謹認真，思考敏捷，為人溫柔可親，風趣幽默，待人有禮謙和沒一點架子，實在令人懷念！
梁教授，主懷安息！
Vivian