Areas of interest

Sean Chorney is an Associate Professor in the Faculty of Education at Simon Fraser University and serves as Associate Dean, Research and International. His research examines how students use mathematics to understand issues of justice, sustainability, and place. Much of his work explores what happens when mathematical activity is connected to historical, social, and environmental questions. Drawing on contexts such as the draining of Sumas Lake, electoral apportionment in British Columbia, and greenhouse gas emissions, he studies how students use mathematics to make sense of complex issues that do not have simple solutions. His work brings together theories of mathematising and métissage to examine how mathematical activity can foster ethical engagement with people, places, and histories. He also studies the role of digital technologies in mathematics learning and has contributed to research on the knowledge, practices, and expertise of mathematics teacher educators. Before joining SFU, Sean taught high school mathematics for more than twenty years. He has developed and studied classroom activities across secondary, undergraduate, and teacher education settings and is an editor of Vector, the journal of the British Columbia Association of Mathematics Teachers.