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Debate Worksheet: Strong and Weak Evidence

Debate lesson 3: Strong and weak evidence · Set 11 · 40 questions
TalentJR

Debater's tip (Relevant, specific, reliable): Relevant: does it talk about the topic of the motion? Specific: does it say exactly who, what, where or how many? “30 of 40 students” beats “lots of students”. Reliable: can we trust where it came from? Records, textbooks and official bodies beat rumours and unsigned posts.

NameDateTime takenScore ___ / 40
  1. 1.True or false: In a debate on school gardens: “Cricket is popular in India.” — this is weak because it is not relevant to the topic. (a) False (b) True
  2. 2.🔎 Strong or weak evidence: the attendance register for the whole year? (a) strong evidence (b) weak evidence
  3. 3.🔎 Why is this weak evidence? “A lot of water gets wasted somewhere.” (a) not specific (b) not reliable (c) not relevant
  4. 4.🔎 Strong or weak evidence: “Everybody knows it.”? (a) weak evidence (b) strong evidence
  5. 5.True or false: a story you are not sure about is strong evidence. (a) False (b) True
  6. 6.True or false: “My neighbour heard it from someone.” — this is weak because its source is not reliable. (a) False (b) True
  7. 7.True or false: “A website with no name says so.” — this is weak because its source is not reliable. (a) True (b) False
  8. 8.True or false: the school library’s record of books borrowed is strong evidence. (a) True (b) False
  9. 9.🔎 Strong or weak evidence: one friend’s guess? (a) weak evidence (b) strong evidence
  10. 10.True or false: “A forwarded message says so.” — this is weak because its source is not reliable. (a) True (b) False
  11. 11.🔎 Strong or weak evidence: “Lots of people think so.”? (a) weak evidence (b) strong evidence
  12. 12.🔎 Which source is most reliable in a debate on saving water? (a) a chat forward (b) an unsigned poster (c) a guess (d) the city water board
  13. 13.🔎 Which is more specific? (a) lots of students (b) 30 of 40 students
  14. 14.True or false: the school nurse’s record of sick days is strong evidence. (a) True (b) False
  15. 15.True or false: the attendance register for the whole year is strong evidence. (a) True (b) False
  16. 16.🔎 Why is this weak evidence? In a debate on sports periods: “Mangoes grow in summer.” (a) not reliable (b) not relevant (c) not specific
  17. 17.🔎 Why is this weak evidence? “A forwarded message says so.” (a) not specific (b) not reliable (c) not relevant
  18. 18.True or false: an unsigned post with no source is strong evidence. (a) True (b) False
  19. 19.True or false: In a debate on saving water: “My favourite colour is green.” — this is weak because its source is not reliable. (a) True (b) False
  20. 20.🔎 A fact about cricket in a debate on school uniforms is… (a) not relevant (b) very specific (c) very strong
  21. 21.True or false: one friend’s guess is strong evidence. (a) False (b) True
  22. 22.🔎 Strong or weak evidence: a fact from our science textbook? (a) weak evidence (b) strong evidence
  23. 23.🔎 Why is this weak evidence? “My neighbour heard it from someone.” (a) not relevant (b) not reliable (c) not specific
  24. 24.🔎 Why is this weak evidence? In a debate on saving water: “My favourite colour is green.” (a) not specific (b) not relevant (c) not reliable
  25. 25.🔎 Why is this weak evidence? “I saw it on a random poster once.” (a) not specific (b) not reliable (c) not relevant
  26. 26.True or false: a story you are not sure about is weak evidence. (a) True (b) False
  27. 27.True or false: “Some people say it helps somehow.” — this is weak because it is not relevant to the topic. (a) True (b) False
  28. 28.🔎 Why is this weak evidence? “Studies show things.” (a) not reliable (b) not specific (c) not relevant
  29. 29.🔎 Why is this weak evidence? “Lots of students like it.” (a) not reliable (b) not relevant (c) not specific
  30. 30.🔎 Strong or weak evidence: measured results from our class experiment? (a) strong evidence (b) weak evidence
  31. 31.True or false: “My neighbour heard it from someone.” — this is weak because it is not specific (no who, what or how many). (a) False (b) True
  32. 32.True or false: a fact from our science textbook is strong evidence. (a) True (b) False
  33. 33.True or false: “It is good for many reasons.” — this is weak because its source is not reliable. (a) True (b) False
  34. 34.🔎 Why is this weak evidence? In a debate on reading: “Trains run on tracks.” (a) not reliable (b) not relevant (c) not specific
  35. 35.🔎 Why is this weak evidence? “Some people say it helps somehow.” (a) not specific (b) not reliable (c) not relevant
  36. 36.True or false: a rumour forwarded in a chat group is strong evidence. (a) False (b) True
  37. 37.🔎 Strong or weak evidence: “My cousin said so.”? (a) strong evidence (b) weak evidence
  38. 38.True or false: a rumour forwarded in a chat group is weak evidence. (a) True (b) False
  39. 39.True or false: the school nurse’s record of sick days is weak evidence. (a) True (b) False
  40. 40.True or false: In a debate on reading: “Trains run on tracks.” — this is weak because it is not relevant to the topic. (a) False (b) True

Answer key

  1. True
  2. strong evidence
  3. not specific
  4. weak evidence
  5. False
  6. True
  7. True
  8. True
  9. weak evidence
  10. True
  11. weak evidence
  12. the city water board
  13. 30 of 40 students
  14. True
  15. True
  16. not relevant
  17. not reliable
  18. False
  19. False
  20. not relevant
  21. False
  22. strong evidence
  23. not reliable
  24. not relevant
  25. not reliable
  26. True
  27. False
  28. not specific
  29. not specific
  30. strong evidence
  31. False
  32. True
  33. False
  34. not relevant
  35. not specific
  36. False
  37. weak evidence
  38. True
  39. False
  40. True

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