[FONT=Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]Reality television has exploded in popularity over the past few years, introducing everything from survival on a deserted island to ballroom dancing to the private lives of celebrities to our collective consciousness. But can reality TV boost the popularity of engineering? Better still, can it teach engineering principles to a young audience of that notoriously hard-to-reach demographic known as “tweens” (children between the ages of 9 and 12)?[/FONT]

[FONT=Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]“Our goal is to break down stereotypes about engineering and to demystify science and math for children,” says WGBH special initiatives manager Thea Sahr, who helped develop the show. “Kids have a tendency to drop out of science at a pretty young age. But with “Design Squad,” we’re trying to get kids comfortable with math and science before they decide it’s all too difficult.”[/FONT]

[FONT=Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]Sahr believes “Design Squad” will attract the ever-elusive tween audience because it answers the “So what?” question. It will do this, she says, by showing its young audience how math and science concepts are applied to real-world applications such as the projects the teams undertake.[/FONT]