Dilemmas

What is a Dilemma?
Information provided by Caroline Crimm of Sam Houston State University

A dilemma is a problem with no obviously right or wrong solution. It requires thought, involvement, emotion, and conflict. It is an analysis of the historical facts, a short paragraph or a two page essay and a class discussion. It is a sharing of ideas and perhaps, an adjustment of personal views. Elementary teachers use it to help their students think and make choices. High School teachers want students to become interested and involved. College teachers need it to help students develop higher-level thought processes. It is useful, practical and very much needed in a society where we are constantly called on to make choices.

How does a student write a dilemma?
General Instructions to students

1) No more than 2 pages- the best writing is concise writing.
2) Typed, either double space or space and a half
3) If handwritten, it must be NEAT, READABLE and single spaced.

Purpose
The purpose of this Dilemma is for you to combine the facts from your textbook with your own imagination and ideas in order to make an informed decision about an historical problem. There is no right or wrong answer, there is only your interpretation of the facts but make sure you define every fact which affected your decision. Explain every date, event, and person. Write as if your reader knows nothing about the topic. Don't assume anything. You will be graded on the facts you use and your explanations of those facts.

Introduction
In the first paragraph you need to tell your reader about yourself. As you read the chapter, think about your character. Decide what you would have been doing during that time period. Given your own personality, who you are will determine how you react to situations. Be true to yourself and be honest. Learn to be aware of your own strengths and limitations but let your imagination go wild. You may write this dilemma as a personal diary, an official letter reporting on the event, private correspondence to a family member, a newspaper article, or the eyewitness reports of a butler or a maid (the best gossips in the world), a prostitute(pillow talk is very revealing), or even a favorite pet(who might sit on a lap and report what he hears).

Body of the Dilemma
Using the facts form the textbook, answer the questions from the Dilemma. Make sure that you explain each and every fact, date, person or event which influenced your decision. Be careful to include events which happened elsewhere even if they did not affect you directly. You must make the assumption that you were aware of what was going on at the time. Human beings have always been interested in gossip and you would have been curious to find out about what was going on elsewhere, regardless of where or when you lived. Tell us about it. Your readers want to know! Since this is what you are graded on, this section must be complete. You may not, however, copy from the textbook. It is illegal to use someone else's words as your own(plagiarism), but more importantly the author has three hundred pages available and can wander at some length, you only have two pages. It is your job to condense what the author says into your own words and explain his thoughts much more briefly. You do not have room for excess verbiage.

Conclusion
Once you have explained the facts and laid the groundwork for your decision, you conclude with your solution. This is your solution and there is no wrong answer. You are ALWAYS RIGHT as long as you have the facts to back you up. When you present your solution to the class, remember that there will be those who do not necessarily agree. You must be able to use the facts to defend your opinion and, preferably, convince others that your way is the best and most logical solution. It is here that imagination and facts combine to change history. You might have made a difference.

Steps to creating your own Dilemmas

1. Find a time period with a problem.

Read through your history textbook and pick out a time period where there were different points of view (the Indians or the colonists), different groups (Federalists, Democrats or Republicans), or people with different ideas (Spanish, French, or British). Let each student make a choice based on their own view of the period or the problem. There should not be any evident right or wrong answer and you should always tie the dilemma to modern problems or conflicts.

2. Determine what information the students will need to make a decision.

Either you or the students may gather material from the Internet or from books which the students can use to develop an answer. If you lecture, prepare you lecture notes so that you give all of the sides of a particular problem. The important point is to help your students see that historical decisions were not based on whether one group was right or wrong but that each made different choices, just as they do.

3. Write your Dilemma questions so that there are no right or wrong answers.

The first question in the Dilemma should allow the student to use his or her imagination in creating a life, family, means of making a living, entertainment, etc. The middle part of the Dilemma should help the student focus on the facts by asking specific questions which the students need to make an informed decision. The final question asks the student to take a stand and resolve the problem as they interpret the facts. Each student's answer will be different. These differences will come out during the debate.

4. Have the students write down their solution to the problem

You can require as little as a paragraph to as much as two pages. Help the students learn to write clearly and concisely and focus on the facts. Demand good writing.

5. Hold a class discussion

Each student should read their first paragraph which describes their life-style. They should then read thei final paragraph which gives their solution. Associate the historical dilemma with present problems. The discussions will get heated but teach students to use the facts to defend their point of view. Keep the students respectful of each other but let them get emotional. If they are excited they will remember the facts.