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Debate Worksheet: Strong and Weak Evidence

Debate lesson 3: Strong and weak evidence · Set 122 · 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: “It is good for many reasons.” — this is weak because it is not relevant to the topic. (a) True (b) False
  2. 2.🔎 Strong or weak evidence: the school nurse’s record of sick days? (a) weak evidence (b) strong evidence
  3. 3.🔎 Strong or weak evidence: measured results from our class experiment? (a) weak evidence (b) strong evidence
  4. 4.True or false: “I think I dreamt it.” — this is weak because its source is not reliable. (a) False (b) True
  5. 5.🔎 Strong or weak evidence: the attendance register for the whole year? (a) weak evidence (b) strong evidence
  6. 6.🔎 Why is this weak evidence? “Studies show things.” (a) not specific (b) not reliable (c) not relevant
  7. 7.True or false: a survey of 300 students in our school is weak evidence. (a) False (b) True
  8. 8.🔎 Why is this weak evidence? In a debate on homework: “Mount Everest is very tall.” (a) not reliable (b) not specific (c) not relevant
  9. 9.🔎 Which is more specific? (a) 30 of 40 students (b) lots of students
  10. 10.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
  11. 11.True or false: “A website with no name says so.” — this is weak because it is not specific (no who, what or how many). (a) True (b) False
  12. 12.🔎 Strong or weak evidence: “My cousin said so.”? (a) strong evidence (b) weak evidence
  13. 13.True or false: measured results from our class experiment is strong evidence. (a) True (b) False
  14. 14.🔎 Why is this weak evidence? “Some people say it helps somehow.” (a) not specific (b) not reliable (c) not relevant
  15. 15.🔎 Strong or weak evidence: the school library’s record of books borrowed? (a) weak evidence (b) strong evidence
  16. 16.🔎 What makes evidence strong? (a) funny and short (b) loud and long (c) relevant and reliable (d) old and vague
  17. 17.🔎 Why is this weak evidence? “A website with no name says so.” (a) not relevant (b) not specific (c) not reliable
  18. 18.True or false: a story you are not sure about is weak evidence. (a) True (b) False
  19. 19.🔎 Strong or weak evidence: a rumour forwarded in a chat group? (a) strong evidence (b) weak evidence
  20. 20.🔎 A fact about cricket in a debate on school uniforms is… (a) very strong (b) very specific (c) not relevant
  21. 21.🔎 Why is this weak evidence? “My neighbour heard it from someone.” (a) not reliable (b) not specific (c) not relevant
  22. 22.True or false: In a debate on saving water: “My favourite colour is green.” — this is weak because it is not specific (no who, what or how many). (a) False (b) True
  23. 23.True or false: measured results from our class experiment is weak evidence. (a) False (b) True
  24. 24.True or false: the school library’s record of books borrowed is weak evidence. (a) True (b) False
  25. 25.True or false: a story you are not sure about is strong evidence. (a) True (b) False
  26. 26.🔎 Before using a number in a debate, you should… (a) hide the source (b) check where it came from (c) round it to 100 (d) make it bigger
  27. 27.True or false: In a debate on school gardens: “Cricket is popular in India.” — this is weak because it is not specific (no who, what or how many). (a) False (b) True
  28. 28.🔎 Strong or weak evidence: “Everybody knows it.”? (a) weak evidence (b) strong evidence
  29. 29.True or false: In a debate on saving water: “My favourite colour is green.” — this is weak because it is not relevant to the topic. (a) True (b) False
  30. 30.🔎 Strong or weak evidence: “Lots of people think so.”? (a) weak evidence (b) strong evidence
  31. 31.🔎 Why is this weak evidence? “A lot of water gets wasted somewhere.” (a) not reliable (b) not specific (c) not relevant
  32. 32.True or false: “I saw it on a random poster once.” — this is weak because its source is not reliable. (a) True (b) False
  33. 33.True or false: the school library’s record of books borrowed is strong evidence. (a) True (b) False
  34. 34.True or false: “A forwarded message says so.” — this is weak because its source is not reliable. (a) True (b) False
  35. 35.True or false: a rumour forwarded in a chat group is weak evidence. (a) False (b) True
  36. 36.True or false: the school nurse’s record of sick days is strong evidence. (a) False (b) True
  37. 37.True or false: “A lot of water gets wasted somewhere.” — this is weak because it is not relevant to the topic. (a) False (b) True
  38. 38.True or false: “My neighbour heard it from someone.” — this is weak because it is not specific (no who, what or how many). (a) True (b) False
  39. 39.True or false: “Lots of people think so.” is weak evidence. (a) False (b) True
  40. 40.True or false: “Everybody knows it.” is weak evidence. (a) False (b) True

Answer key

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

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