It is an era of change for the North Carolina public school system. The next school year, 2012-2013, will mark the K-12 transition from the Standard Course of Study to the Common Core State Standards ( CCSS ) in English Language Arts and Mathematics and the North Carolina Essential Standards ( NCES ) for all other subject areas.

With this shift has come a more explicit focus on the science, technology, engineering and mathematics, or STEM, components of education—particularly the second and third letters, technology and engineering. These subjects were deemed the “forgotten” part of STEM education by Matt Walton, N.C . State graduate and current technology and engineering teacher in Henrico County, Va . in a recent column for CNN.

“Often technology and engineering education is overlooked when people talk about STEM education or when governments make decisions about education policy,” Walton wrote.

But technology and engineering are not forgotten at Wake N.C . State Early College High School. Located on Varsity Drive, the STEM school opened its doors to its first class of 55 students last fall. Three hundred twelve Wake County students had entered the lottery to be accepted.

Principal Rob Matheson said one of the goals of Wake N.C . State is to provide a personalized education for each student.

“These are the kids who might fall through the cracks in a traditional high school,” Matheson said. “With 55 students and five teachers, they can’t hide here. They will not be ignored.”

Using the standard course of study as a basis for all subjects, Matheson explained the teachers’ model how to apply the engineering design process, a series of steps that guide engineers in solving problems, to all subjects.

Laura Bottomley, engineering professor and director of Women in Engineering and K-12 Outreach, has been on the Wake N.C. State advisory board since before the early college opened.

“Engineering is more than robots and circuits,” Bottomley said. “Engineering is systematic problem solving.”

Wake N.C. State applies a STEM-based approach to examining the 14 grand challenges for engineering, as determined by a committee of the National Academy of Engineering. These challenges include imminent issues that our generation may face, ranging from providing access to clean water to securing cyberspace.

Using the idea of project-based learning, students at Wake N.C. State formed groups and together proposed a solution to one of these challenges. Applying the engineering design process, they devised and conducted experiments to test their possible solutions.

“My group is examining the amount of nitrogen in different farm animals’ manure and which one affects the environment most,” Kayla, a student at Wake N.C. State, said. “We also hope to find one that we can make a fuel with.”

Another group was working on making children’s toys solar powered to eliminate battery acid and make them safer. Camaya, a student working with this group, said she hoped to go to N.C. State after graduating high school and from there go on to medical school and become a pediatric surgeon.

“At Wake N.C. State, we have observed no differences with respect to STEM subjects between genders or ethnicities,” Matheson said. The school endorses the idea that anyone can excel in these subjects and pursue a STEM-related career.

Bottomley said that STEM education helps prepare students for every type of career.

“The engineering design process teaches students how to think and solve problems,” Bottomley said. “It also creates the optimism that every problem can be solved, which is relevant to any subject area.”

According to Matheson, two years ago there was only one early college in Wake County and in two more years there will be four total. These schools are designed to prepare students for the high demands of college.

According to Bottomley, many elementary schools in Wake County have added the STEM school label but lack the guidance or resources to incorporate the STEM concepts in the classroom.

“The biggest source of resistance is the fact that teachers still have to deal with End of Grade (EOG) testing,” Bottomley said. “Elementary school teachers generally don’t see project-based learning as teaching students how to answer multiple choice questions.”

According to Bottomley, this kind of limited thinking can be harmful to children’s creative minds.

“Our school system has trained creative thinking out of students,” Bottomley said. “By high school, students expect everything to be laid out for them, but that’s not realistic.”

Bottomley said STEM components, particularly engineering, teaches students the thinking and reasoning skills they need to be productive citizens.

“Life is not multiple choice,” she said.

Bottomley teaches a Children Design, Create and Invent course in the elementary education department at NC State. The course is designed to model for prospective elementary teachers the active, hands-on activities that promote children’s understanding of the fundamental STEM concepts and stimulate their imaginations.

KeJuan Weaver, a junior in elementary education, said he feels very confident about teaching STEM components in the classroom.

“We have prepared for it in our classes here at State,” Weaver said. “If I’m not so good, I feel we have made connections to some very good resources.”