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Debate Worksheet: Strong and Weak Evidence

Debate lesson 3: Strong and weak evidence · Set 201 · 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.🔎 Before using a number in a debate, you should… (a) hide the source (b) make it bigger (c) round it to 100 (d) check where it came from
  2. 2.🔎 Which is more specific? (a) 30 of 40 students (b) lots of students
  3. 3.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) False (b) True
  4. 4.🔎 Strong or weak evidence: “Lots of people think so.”? (a) weak evidence (b) strong evidence
  5. 5.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
  6. 6.🔎 Why is this weak evidence? “My neighbour heard it from someone.” (a) not specific (b) not relevant (c) not reliable
  7. 7.True or false: “A website with no name says so.” — this is weak because it is not relevant to the topic. (a) False (b) True
  8. 8.True or false: a story you are not sure about is weak evidence. (a) True (b) False
  9. 9.True or false: “A lot of water gets wasted somewhere.” — this is weak because its source is not reliable. (a) False (b) True
  10. 10.True or false: “Lots of people think so.” is weak evidence. (a) False (b) True
  11. 11.True or false: one friend’s guess is strong evidence. (a) False (b) True
  12. 12.True or false: “Everybody knows it.” is weak evidence. (a) False (b) True
  13. 13.🔎 Strong or weak evidence: figures from the city water board? (a) strong evidence (b) weak evidence
  14. 14.🔎 Strong or weak evidence: a fact from our science textbook? (a) strong evidence (b) weak evidence
  15. 15.🔎 Why is this weak evidence? In a debate on saving water: “My favourite colour is green.” (a) not specific (b) not reliable (c) not relevant
  16. 16.🔎 Strong or weak evidence: the school library’s record of books borrowed? (a) weak evidence (b) strong evidence
  17. 17.True or false: the attendance register for the whole year is strong evidence. (a) False (b) True
  18. 18.True or false: “My cousin said so.” is weak evidence. (a) True (b) False
  19. 19.🔎 What makes evidence strong? (a) old and vague (b) relevant and reliable (c) loud and long (d) funny and short
  20. 20.🔎 Strong or weak evidence: “Everybody knows it.”? (a) strong evidence (b) weak evidence
  21. 21.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) True (b) False
  22. 22.True or false: “I think I dreamt it.” — this is weak because it is not specific (no who, what or how many). (a) True (b) False
  23. 23.True or false: “I saw it on a random poster once.” — this is weak because its source is not reliable. (a) True (b) False
  24. 24.🔎 Why is this weak evidence? In a debate on sports periods: “Mangoes grow in summer.” (a) not relevant (b) not specific (c) not reliable
  25. 25.True or false: a fact from our science textbook is weak evidence. (a) True (b) False
  26. 26.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
  27. 27.🔎 Why is this weak evidence? “Lots of students like it.” (a) not reliable (b) not specific (c) not relevant
  28. 28.🔎 Strong or weak evidence: “My cousin said so.”? (a) weak evidence (b) strong evidence
  29. 29.🔎 Why is this weak evidence? In a debate on reading: “Trains run on tracks.” (a) not relevant (b) not reliable (c) not specific
  30. 30.🔎 Which source is most reliable in a debate on saving water? (a) a chat forward (b) a guess (c) the city water board (d) an unsigned poster
  31. 31.True or false: a fact from our science textbook is strong evidence. (a) True (b) False
  32. 32.True or false: “Everybody knows it.” is strong evidence. (a) False (b) True
  33. 33.🔎 Why is this weak evidence? “A forwarded message says so.” (a) not reliable (b) not specific (c) not relevant
  34. 34.🔎 Strong or weak evidence: one friend’s guess? (a) strong evidence (b) weak evidence
  35. 35.True or false: the school nurse’s record of sick days is strong evidence. (a) True (b) False
  36. 36.🔎 A fact about cricket in a debate on school uniforms is… (a) not relevant (b) very strong (c) very specific
  37. 37.🔎 Strong or weak evidence: an unsigned post with no source? (a) strong evidence (b) weak evidence
  38. 38.True or false: the school nurse’s record of sick days is weak evidence. (a) True (b) False
  39. 39.🔎 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
  40. 40.🔎 Strong or weak evidence: a survey of 300 students in our school? (a) strong evidence (b) weak evidence

Answer key

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

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