The book has been closed on a debate that has sparked countless heated discussions at Nashua Board of Education meetings over the past seven years.

With little fanfare, board members voted unanimously last week to make Freshman Seminar an elective beginning next school year. The board also voted to reduce the course, which is intended to ease the transition from middle school, to a half semester.

The decision was in line with a recommendation from administrators, who have been putting together next year’s program of studies.

There was no discussion or debate before last week’s vote, in stark contrast to meetings of the past, when board members would question the course’s value and demand data showing it was having its intended effect. The debate at the board level has centered around whether all students should be required to take a course that was seen as unnecessary for those who were already prepared for high school.

The course was originally designed as part of the district’s redesign of its high school program, coinciding with the split into two high schools in 2004. It started out as mandatory for all students.

According to a recent course description, students are introduced to the layout of the building and the services available.

“Students create a career portfolio containing information on personal and career interests, a four-year plan for high school and a post-secondary plan,” according to the course description. “The seminar also covers topics such as diversity, respect, tolerance, problem solving, decision making and learning styles. Academic skills that are essential for success in high school are also taught.”

In November 2004, only a few months after the program was rolled out, board President Kim Shaw proposed suspending Freshman Seminar until its curriculum could be reworked. The course wasn’t suspended, but the board did direct administrators to re-evaluate it before scheduling began for the next school year. After the review, the board decided to keep the course as a semester long.

In November 2006, board members again raised concerns about the purpose of the course. Some members threatened to withhold funding for publishing the program of studies until evidence of its effectiveness was provided.

In January 2007, members of the Curriculum Committee voted unanimously to reduce Freshman Seminar to a quarter-course.

“I look at this course and I can’t decide what it is,” board member Edwina Kwan said.

In February 2007, board members approved a two-year plan to overhaul the course, transforming it into a hybrid with an advanced computers class.

Starting in the 2008-09 school year, the course was reduced to a half semester for students who scored well on state standardized tests, but was still required as a semester-long course for all others. This came after board member Jack Kelley proposed making the course optional for all students, an idea that was voted down.

At the time, Kelley told administrators he had heard complaints from parents that students were wasting time watching movies and working on homework for other courses.

“I see a lot of nice-sounding phrasing and words, but I don’t see any concrete results that this course has accomplished,” Kelley said.

Over time, teachers have come to the defense of the course whenever its effectiveness has been challenged.

“If I was given a choice between teaching an AP class and Freshman Seminar, I would choose Freshman Seminar,” Nashua High School South social studies teacher Neil Claffey told the board in January 2007.

Part of the issue from the beginning was that some board members questioned whether they ever authorized it as a mandatory course. This week, Kelley said he has been one of the course’s biggest opponents and was glad to see it made into an elective.

“We’ve hashed it out as many times as it can be hashed out,” Kelley said. “Let’s try it this way and see what comes back.”

Although there was no debate about last week’s vote to make it optional, much of the discussion had already occurred at the Curriculum Committee level. Even there, debate was minimal.

At a January meeting, board member Sandra Ziehm questioned whether any students are even going to enroll now that it’s optional and only a half credit.

“I’d like you to come back to us and let us know what enrollment looks like after they’ve signed up,” Ziehm said. “From the reception I’ve heard on Freshman Seminar, it wouldn’t surprise me if we had a large number of kids who didn’t take it. And that could cause a scheduling problem with that half credit.”

Superintendent Mark Conrad said the decision was a recognition that the high schools need to develop a new approach to the advisory program. Part of the issue with the original design of Freshman Seminar was that it tried to squeeze in four years’ worth of preparatory advice into the first semester, he said.

“Talking to a freshmen just coming in about the college application process, I think, is difficult,” Conrad said. “Talking about it to a junior is much more meaningful. You need to look at advisory as an ongoing process over a high school career.”

Conrad said the switch to making Freshman Seminar an elective is one step in what needs to be an ongoing conversation about improving the quality of the high schools’ advisory program.

“At the time we put it into place, in some ways, it really was a progressive approach,” Conrad said. “But I think we can come up with a better approach to meet student needs.”

The Learning Curve appears Thursdays in The Telegraph. Michael Brindley can be reached at 594-6426 or mbrindley@nashuatelegraph.com.