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Debate Worksheet: Strong and Weak Evidence

Debate lesson 3: Strong and weak evidence · Set 195 · 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: one friend’s guess is strong evidence. (a) True (b) False
  2. 2.🔎 Strong or weak evidence: “My cousin said so.”? (a) strong evidence (b) weak evidence
  3. 3.True or false: In a debate on saving water: “My favourite colour is green.” — this is weak because its source is not reliable. (a) False (b) True
  4. 4.True or false: “I saw it on a random poster once.” — this is weak because its source is not reliable. (a) True (b) False
  5. 5.🔎 Why is this weak evidence? In a debate on sports periods: “Mangoes grow in summer.” (a) not specific (b) not relevant (c) not reliable
  6. 6.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
  7. 7.🔎 Why is this weak evidence? In a debate on reading: “Trains run on tracks.” (a) not reliable (b) not relevant (c) not specific
  8. 8.True or false: a survey of 300 students in our school is weak evidence. (a) True (b) False
  9. 9.True or false: “My cousin said so.” is weak evidence. (a) True (b) False
  10. 10.🔎 Why is this weak evidence? “I think I dreamt it.” (a) not relevant (b) not specific (c) not reliable
  11. 11.🔎 What makes evidence strong? (a) old and vague (b) relevant and reliable (c) loud and long (d) funny and short
  12. 12.🔎 Strong or weak evidence: the school nurse’s record of sick days? (a) strong evidence (b) weak evidence
  13. 13.🔎 Which source is most reliable in a debate on saving water? (a) a guess (b) an unsigned poster (c) the city water board (d) a chat forward
  14. 14.🔎 Strong or weak evidence: “Everybody knows it.”? (a) strong evidence (b) weak evidence
  15. 15.True or false: “A forwarded message says so.” — this is weak because its source is not reliable. (a) True (b) False
  16. 16.True or false: “Everybody knows it.” is strong evidence. (a) True (b) False
  17. 17.🔎 Why is this weak evidence? “I saw it on a random poster once.” (a) not specific (b) not relevant (c) not reliable
  18. 18.🔎 Strong or weak evidence: a story you are not sure about? (a) weak evidence (b) strong evidence
  19. 19.🔎 Strong or weak evidence: measured results from our class experiment? (a) weak evidence (b) strong evidence
  20. 20.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) False (b) True
  21. 21.True or false: the school library’s record of books borrowed is weak evidence. (a) True (b) False
  22. 22.True or false: a survey of 300 students in our school is strong evidence. (a) False (b) True
  23. 23.🔎 Before using a number in a debate, you should… (a) check where it came from (b) round it to 100 (c) hide the source (d) make it bigger
  24. 24.🔎 Why is this weak evidence? “A lot of water gets wasted somewhere.” (a) not relevant (b) not reliable (c) not specific
  25. 25.🔎 Why is this weak evidence? “It is good for many reasons.” (a) not reliable (b) not relevant (c) not specific
  26. 26.🔎 Why is this weak evidence? In a debate on school gardens: “Cricket is popular in India.” (a) not specific (b) not relevant (c) not reliable
  27. 27.True or false: “Lots of people think so.” is strong evidence. (a) False (b) True
  28. 28.True or false: a fact from our science textbook is weak evidence. (a) False (b) True
  29. 29.True or false: “Everybody knows it.” is weak evidence. (a) True (b) False
  30. 30.🔎 Strong or weak evidence: a survey of 300 students in our school? (a) weak evidence (b) strong evidence
  31. 31.🔎 Why is this weak evidence? “Some people say it helps somehow.” (a) not relevant (b) not reliable (c) not specific
  32. 32.🔎 Strong or weak evidence: the attendance register for the whole year? (a) strong evidence (b) weak evidence
  33. 33.🔎 Which is more specific? (a) 30 of 40 students (b) lots of students
  34. 34.True or false: one friend’s guess is weak evidence. (a) True (b) False
  35. 35.🔎 Why is this weak evidence? “A website with no name says so.” (a) not specific (b) not relevant (c) not reliable
  36. 36.True or false: “Lots of students like it.” — this is weak because its source is not reliable. (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 relevant to the topic. (a) True (b) False
  38. 38.🔎 Strong or weak evidence: an unsigned post with no source? (a) weak evidence (b) strong evidence
  39. 39.🔎 Strong or weak evidence: a rumour forwarded in a chat group? (a) strong evidence (b) weak evidence
  40. 40.True or false: “Some people say it helps somehow.” — this is weak because it is not relevant to the topic. (a) False (b) True

Answer key

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

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