New game to teach students about slavery, the American Civil War

Public media provider Thirteen today published a new educational web game that teaches students about U.S. history by putting them into the shoes of a runaway slave in the years leading up to the Civil War. The game, dubbed Flight to Freedom, is the second in Thirteen's "Mission US" series, which will eventually offer four unique web games intended to complement a traditional history curriculum. The previous title, For Crown or Colony?, covers the events surrounding the Revolutionary War, and future entries will detail the construction of the transcontinental railroad and the evolution of journalism in the early 20th century. The developer behind these titles is the New York-based studio Electric Funstuff, which has previously developed other forms of educational software for young children. Alongside publisher Thirteen, funding for the project comes from the Corporation for Public Broadcasting (CPB) and the National Endowment for the Humanities. CPB CEO and president Patricia Harrison explained that the project's supporters hope to use Mission US to connect with students "using one of the most popular media in their lives today -- interactive, online games -- to engage and educate them in American history and civics." The first two entries in the Mission US series are available to play for free at the project's official website.