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Debate Worksheet: Strong and Weak Evidence

Debate lesson 3: Strong and weak evidence · Set 143 · 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.🔎 Why is this weak evidence? In a debate on reading: “Trains run on tracks.” (a) not relevant (b) not specific (c) not reliable
  2. 2.🔎 Strong or weak evidence: the school library’s record of books borrowed? (a) strong evidence (b) weak evidence
  3. 3.🔎 Why is this weak evidence? “It is good for many reasons.” (a) not reliable (b) not specific (c) not relevant
  4. 4.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
  5. 5.🔎 Strong or weak evidence: “Everybody knows it.”? (a) weak evidence (b) strong evidence
  6. 6.True or false: “I saw it on a random poster once.” — this is weak because it is not specific (no who, what or how many). (a) False (b) True
  7. 7.🔎 Strong or weak evidence: a rumour forwarded in a chat group? (a) strong evidence (b) weak evidence
  8. 8.True or false: “My neighbour heard it from someone.” — this is weak because its source is not reliable. (a) False (b) True
  9. 9.🔎 Strong or weak evidence: the school nurse’s record of sick days? (a) weak evidence (b) strong evidence
  10. 10.True or false: one friend’s guess is strong evidence. (a) False (b) True
  11. 11.True or false: “A forwarded message says so.” — this is weak because its source is not reliable. (a) False (b) True
  12. 12.🔎 A fact about cricket in a debate on school uniforms is… (a) very strong (b) not relevant (c) very specific
  13. 13.🔎 Strong or weak evidence: one friend’s guess? (a) strong evidence (b) weak evidence
  14. 14.🔎 Why is this weak evidence? “I think I dreamt it.” (a) not relevant (b) not reliable (c) not specific
  15. 15.🔎 What makes evidence strong? (a) old and vague (b) funny and short (c) relevant and reliable (d) loud and long
  16. 16.🔎 Why is this weak evidence? In a debate on homework: “Mount Everest is very tall.” (a) not relevant (b) not reliable (c) not specific
  17. 17.🔎 Why is this weak evidence? In a debate on school gardens: “Cricket is popular in India.” (a) not specific (b) not reliable (c) not relevant
  18. 18.🔎 Strong or weak evidence: measured results from our class experiment? (a) strong evidence (b) weak evidence
  19. 19.🔎 Why is this weak evidence? “A lot of water gets wasted somewhere.” (a) not relevant (b) not specific (c) not reliable
  20. 20.🔎 Which source is most reliable in a debate on saving water? (a) the city water board (b) a guess (c) an unsigned poster (d) a chat forward
  21. 21.🔎 Before using a number in a debate, you should… (a) check where it came from (b) make it bigger (c) hide the source (d) round it to 100
  22. 22.🔎 Why is this weak evidence? “I saw it on a random poster once.” (a) not reliable (b) not specific (c) not relevant
  23. 23.True or false: the school library’s record of books borrowed is strong evidence. (a) True (b) False
  24. 24.🔎 Which is more specific? (a) 30 of 40 students (b) lots of students
  25. 25.True or false: a fact from our science textbook is strong evidence. (a) False (b) True
  26. 26.True or false: the attendance register for the whole year is weak evidence. (a) False (b) True
  27. 27.True or false: “A lot of water gets wasted somewhere.” — this is weak because it is not specific (no who, what or how many). (a) True (b) False
  28. 28.True or false: a survey of 300 students in our school is weak evidence. (a) True (b) False
  29. 29.True or false: a fact from our science textbook is weak evidence. (a) False (b) True
  30. 30.True or false: “I think I dreamt it.” — this is weak because its source is not reliable. (a) False (b) True
  31. 31.True or false: measured results from our class experiment is strong evidence. (a) False (b) True
  32. 32.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
  33. 33.True or false: “Lots of students like it.” — this is weak because it is not specific (no who, what or how many). (a) False (b) True
  34. 34.🔎 Why is this weak evidence? “A forwarded message says so.” (a) not relevant (b) not specific (c) not reliable
  35. 35.True or false: a story you are not sure about is strong evidence. (a) True (b) False
  36. 36.True or false: “I saw it on a random poster once.” — this is weak because its source is not reliable. (a) False (b) True
  37. 37.True or false: figures from the city water board is strong evidence. (a) True (b) False
  38. 38.True or false: the attendance register for the whole year is strong evidence. (a) False (b) True
  39. 39.True or false: a rumour forwarded in a chat group is strong evidence. (a) True (b) False
  40. 40.True or false: “A website with no name says so.” — this is weak because its source is not reliable. (a) False (b) True

Answer key

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

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