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Debate Worksheet: Strong and Weak Evidence

Debate lesson 3: Strong and weak evidence · Set 212 · 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: a story you are not sure about? (a) weak evidence (b) strong evidence
  2. 2.🔎 Why is this weak evidence? “Lots of students like it.” (a) not relevant (b) not specific (c) not reliable
  3. 3.🔎 Why is this weak evidence? “A lot of water gets wasted somewhere.” (a) not reliable (b) not relevant (c) not specific
  4. 4.🔎 Strong or weak evidence: figures from the city water board? (a) strong evidence (b) weak evidence
  5. 5.True or false: “Everybody knows it.” is strong evidence. (a) False (b) True
  6. 6.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
  7. 7.🔎 A fact about cricket in a debate on school uniforms is… (a) not relevant (b) very strong (c) very specific
  8. 8.🔎 Strong or weak evidence: “Everybody knows it.”? (a) weak evidence (b) strong evidence
  9. 9.🔎 What makes evidence strong? (a) relevant and reliable (b) old and vague (c) funny and short (d) loud and long
  10. 10.🔎 Strong or weak evidence: a fact from our science textbook? (a) strong evidence (b) weak evidence
  11. 11.🔎 Why is this weak evidence? “A forwarded message says so.” (a) not reliable (b) not relevant (c) not specific
  12. 12.🔎 Strong or weak evidence: the school library’s record of books borrowed? (a) strong evidence (b) weak evidence
  13. 13.True or false: “Lots of students like it.” — this is weak because it is not relevant to the topic. (a) True (b) False
  14. 14.🔎 Which is more specific? (a) lots of students (b) 30 of 40 students
  15. 15.🔎 Strong or weak evidence: the attendance register for the whole year? (a) strong evidence (b) weak evidence
  16. 16.True or false: a fact from our science textbook is weak evidence. (a) True (b) False
  17. 17.🔎 Why is this weak evidence? “Studies show things.” (a) not reliable (b) not specific (c) not relevant
  18. 18.🔎 Why is this weak evidence? In a debate on school gardens: “Cricket is popular in India.” (a) not reliable (b) not specific (c) not relevant
  19. 19.🔎 Which source is most reliable in a debate on saving water? (a) a guess (b) the city water board (c) an unsigned poster (d) a chat forward
  20. 20.True or false: “Everybody knows it.” is weak evidence. (a) False (b) True
  21. 21.🔎 Strong or weak evidence: “Lots of people think so.”? (a) weak evidence (b) strong evidence
  22. 22.True or false: “Studies show things.” — this is weak because its source is not reliable. (a) False (b) True
  23. 23.True or false: the attendance register for the whole year is strong evidence. (a) True (b) False
  24. 24.🔎 Why is this weak evidence? In a debate on reading: “Trains run on tracks.” (a) not specific (b) not reliable (c) not relevant
  25. 25.True or false: “A lot of water gets wasted somewhere.” — this is weak because it is not relevant to the topic. (a) True (b) False
  26. 26.True or false: “Studies show things.” — this is weak because it is not specific (no who, what or how many). (a) False (b) True
  27. 27.True or false: “My cousin said so.” is weak evidence. (a) True (b) False
  28. 28.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
  29. 29.🔎 Why is this weak evidence? “It is good for many reasons.” (a) not specific (b) not relevant (c) not reliable
  30. 30.True or false: “My neighbour heard it from someone.” — this is weak because its source is not reliable. (a) False (b) True
  31. 31.🔎 Strong or weak evidence: the school nurse’s record of sick days? (a) weak evidence (b) strong evidence
  32. 32.🔎 Strong or weak evidence: one friend’s guess? (a) weak evidence (b) strong evidence
  33. 33.🔎 Strong or weak evidence: an unsigned post with no source? (a) weak evidence (b) strong evidence
  34. 34.🔎 Before using a number in a debate, you should… (a) hide the source (b) round it to 100 (c) make it bigger (d) check where it came from
  35. 35.True or false: measured results from our class experiment is strong evidence. (a) False (b) True
  36. 36.🔎 Why is this weak evidence? “I saw it on a random poster once.” (a) not reliable (b) not relevant (c) not specific
  37. 37.True or false: “Lots of students like it.” — this is weak because it is not specific (no who, what or how many). (a) True (b) False
  38. 38.True or false: “Lots of people think so.” is strong evidence. (a) False (b) True
  39. 39.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
  40. 40.True or false: the school library’s record of books borrowed is weak evidence. (a) False (b) True

Answer key

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

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