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Debate Worksheet: Strong and Weak Evidence

Debate lesson 3: Strong and weak evidence · Set 14 · 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.🔎 Strong or weak evidence: one friend’s guess? (a) strong evidence (b) weak evidence
  2. 2.🔎 Which source is most reliable in a debate on saving water? (a) an unsigned poster (b) a guess (c) a chat forward (d) the city water board
  3. 3.🔎 Why is this weak evidence? “Lots of students like it.” (a) not relevant (b) not reliable (c) not specific
  4. 4.🔎 Strong or weak evidence: a rumour forwarded in a chat group? (a) strong evidence (b) weak evidence
  5. 5.True or false: a rumour forwarded in a chat group is weak evidence. (a) True (b) False
  6. 6.🔎 What makes evidence strong? (a) loud and long (b) old and vague (c) relevant and reliable (d) funny and short
  7. 7.🔎 A fact about cricket in a debate on school uniforms is… (a) not relevant (b) very specific (c) very strong
  8. 8.True or false: In a debate on homework: “Mount Everest is very tall.” — this is weak because it is not relevant to the topic. (a) True (b) False
  9. 9.🔎 Strong or weak evidence: the school library’s record of books borrowed? (a) strong evidence (b) weak evidence
  10. 10.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
  11. 11.🔎 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
  12. 12.True or false: “Lots of people think so.” is strong evidence. (a) True (b) False
  13. 13.🔎 Strong or weak evidence: figures from the city water board? (a) weak evidence (b) strong evidence
  14. 14.🔎 Strong or weak evidence: measured results from our class experiment? (a) strong evidence (b) weak evidence
  15. 15.True or false: a fact from our science textbook is weak evidence. (a) False (b) True
  16. 16.True or false: In a debate on homework: “Mount Everest is very tall.” — this is weak because it is not specific (no who, what or how many). (a) True (b) False
  17. 17.🔎 Strong or weak evidence: the attendance register for the whole year? (a) weak evidence (b) strong evidence
  18. 18.🔎 Why is this weak evidence? “It is good for many reasons.” (a) not reliable (b) not specific (c) not relevant
  19. 19.True or false: “My neighbour heard it from someone.” — this is weak because its source is not reliable. (a) True (b) False
  20. 20.True or false: an unsigned post with no source is weak evidence. (a) False (b) True
  21. 21.True or false: the attendance register for the whole year is strong evidence. (a) True (b) False
  22. 22.True or false: “I saw it on a random poster once.” — this is weak because it is not relevant to the topic. (a) False (b) True
  23. 23.True or false: “I think I dreamt it.” — this is weak because it is not relevant to the topic. (a) False (b) True
  24. 24.True or false: “My cousin said so.” is weak evidence. (a) True (b) False
  25. 25.🔎 Which is more specific? (a) lots of students (b) 30 of 40 students
  26. 26.🔎 Why is this weak evidence? In a debate on school gardens: “Cricket is popular in India.” (a) not relevant (b) not specific (c) not reliable
  27. 27.🔎 Strong or weak evidence: “My cousin said so.”? (a) strong evidence (b) weak evidence
  28. 28.True or false: “Some people say it helps somehow.” — this is weak because it is not specific (no who, what or how many). (a) True (b) False
  29. 29.🔎 Why is this weak evidence? “My neighbour heard it from someone.” (a) not reliable (b) not specific (c) not relevant
  30. 30.True or false: a survey of 300 students in our school is strong evidence. (a) True (b) False
  31. 31.True or false: In a debate on sports periods: “Mangoes grow in summer.” — this is weak because it is not relevant to the topic. (a) False (b) True
  32. 32.🔎 Strong or weak evidence: “Lots of people think so.”? (a) strong evidence (b) weak evidence
  33. 33.🔎 Why is this weak evidence? “Some people say it helps somehow.” (a) not relevant (b) not specific (c) not reliable
  34. 34.True or false: “Everybody knows it.” is weak evidence. (a) False (b) True
  35. 35.True or false: measured results from our class experiment is strong evidence. (a) False (b) True
  36. 36.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
  37. 37.True or false: In a debate on sports periods: “Mangoes grow in summer.” — this is weak because it is not specific (no who, what or how many). (a) False (b) True
  38. 38.True or false: “Studies show things.” — this is weak because it is not specific (no who, what or how many). (a) False (b) True
  39. 39.True or false: “I think I dreamt it.” — this is weak because it is not specific (no who, what or how many). (a) False (b) True
  40. 40.True or false: the school nurse’s record of sick days is strong evidence. (a) True (b) False

Answer key

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

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