1. Introduce the concept of a dilemma (10 minutes)

Use familiar sayings to illustrate the concept of a dilemma.

 For example, "I'm damned if I do and damned if I don't" or "Between a rock and a hard place." [Add something from your students' local culture.]

Encourage students to suggest what a dilemma is. Ask them to give examples, and explain why certain examples are dilemmas.

Identify the main features of a dilemma:

• a situation that requires making a choice among alternative actions (including choosing to do nothing)
• all options have advantages and disadvantages

Point out that in a dilemma, even "making the best of a bad situation" may seem impossible because:

• every option seems likely to cause problems
• the consequences, of all available options, are uncertain

Use one of the stories in the module or a dilemma contributed by the students themselves. Have students propose several actions in response to the dilemma. Then, for each action, use these questions:

• What is the desired consequence of your proposed action?
• Might there be other consequences? (Explore the chains of consequences that might result.)
• What are the unknown or unpredictable elements in the situation?
• Who else is involved? How will they be affected by your action? How will they view your action? How will the views of others affect the outcome?