Summer assignments are often bemoaned by students as unnecessarily laborious and detracting from a much-needed two months of relaxation. This year’s task for AP Language students, however, was designed to tackle the reason why most students dread these assignments in the first place. Juniors were tasked with creating a research project on an issue affecting kids at Whitman, which then culminated “in a well-documented and factually-based 4-5 minute speech.” Students wrote on topics ranging from the benefits of bilingual education to the drawbacks of Common Core and tenure to, yes, the arbitrary nature of summer assignments. Below, you’ll find transcripts of the students’ speeches.