Revitalizing Mission US

FAIN: HK-250704-16

WNET (New York, NY 10019-7416)
Sandra Sheppard (Project Director: February 2016 to November 2021)

A conversion effort to upgrade “Mission US” from its current Flash-based game engine to a Unity-based engine, with subsequent enhancements to content and engagement including storyboards, player credentials, and increased literacy supports.

WNET requests funds to revitalize "For Crown or Colony?", the first game in the award-winning "Mission US" series on American history. Designed for middle school-age students, "Mission US" is a free series of online role-playing games that immerse young people in the drama of our nation’s past. "For Crown or Colony?" will be converted from outmoded Flash technology to Unity, ensuring its long-term playability and making it accessible on tablets. The game will also be enhanced with additional features that increase its educational value for diverse learners. WNET will then re-launch the game and report on its experience to the digital humanities community. These activities will create a roadmap for rebuilding subsequent "Mission US" games and provide lessons for other digital projects facing similar technical and educational challenges.

Associated Products

Mission US Webinar: Revolutionary Learning: Interactive History Games for All Secondary Social Studies Students (Film/TV/Video Broadcast or Recording)
Title: Mission US Webinar: Revolutionary Learning: Interactive History Games for All Secondary Social Studies Students
Writer: n/a
Abstract: This webinar explores ways for middle and high school students to “live” transformational moments in U.S. history through the Mission US educational gaming series. Presenter Peter Mabli, Assistant Director of Online Professional Development at the American Social History Project, uses the first Mission US game, “For Crown or Colony?,” to introduce effective ways to integrate “serious games” into U.S. history curriculum. The session unpacks ways to integrate gaming with document-based activities, writing prompts, and other resources in a range of learning environments. It showcases ideas for independent, small group, whole class and flipped learning approaches, while meeting rigorous content and instructional standards. Technology-infused gaming can help students experience a more personal, memorable, and meaningful connection with complex historical content, as they learn to think like historians, develop historical empathy, and discover the role of ordinary men, women, and young people in U.S. history. This session will be of particular benefit to middle and high school teachers and librarians, as well as curriculum specialists and instructional technology specialists. The webinar also discusses strategies for including English language learners and struggling readers in the full learning experience.
Year: 2018
Primary URL: https://home.edweb.net/webinar/socialstudies20181024/
Primary URL Description: Landing page for the EdWeb webinar, where an archived recording is available for viewing free of charge
Secondary URL: http://mission-us.org
Secondary URL Description: Website for the Mission US educational gaming series and resources
Access Model: Free/open access
Format: Digital File

Mission US: "For Crown or Colony?" (New Version) (Game/Simulation)
Title: Mission US: "For Crown or Colony?" (New Version)
Author: n/a
Abstract: WNET has launched a new version of Mission US: “For Crown or Colony?,” its award-winning interactive game for middle grade American history students. Created to engage kids ages 9-13 in learning “from the inside” of American history, each game or “mission” puts students in the role of a young person at a pivotal point in history. In “For Crown or Colony?” the player is Nat, a 14-year-old printer’s apprentice who experiences events leading up to the Boston Massacre in 1770. As players progress through the narrative, they meet historic figures, witness key events, encounter multiple perspectives, and then make choices that reflect the challenges of the times. The series and its accompanying resources for teachers are available at no charge. Mission US launched in 2010, and the first five games in the series were built in Flash—a format that will be phased out by 2020. The revitalization of “For Crown or Colony?” begins the process of rebuilding the series in new technology, while deepening the humanities content and adding new features. The new version of “For Crown or Colony?” incorporates technical and instructional upgrades, including: • Converting the game to the Unity engine, and strengthening core technology. The new “For Crown or Colony?” is now accessible via web streaming on PCs, Macs, and Chromebooks, and via downloadable applications for PC and Mac. An iPad version will be released in January. • Enhancing the game’s historical scholarship, visual design, and select scenes for a more impactful learning experience. • Integrating new and improved learning tools, including a new badge system, to enable young people to draw explicit connections between in-game choices and broader historical themes and perspectives. • New accessibility features for English Language Learners and other struggling readers, including captioning of all spoken dialogue, pause/play/rewind function for video animations, and text-to-speech support.
Year: 2018
Primary URL: https://www.mission-us.org/pages/landing-mission-1
Primary URL Description: Landing page for Mission 1: "For Crown or Colony?"
Secondary URL: http://mission-us.org
Secondary URL Description: Homepage for the Mission US series
Access Model: Free/open access
Programming Language/Platform: Unity WebGL (iPad version will be launching in January)
Source Available?: No

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