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Debate Worksheet: Strong and Weak Evidence

Debate lesson 3: Strong and weak evidence · Set 231 · 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.🔎 Which source is most reliable in a debate on saving water? (a) the city water board (b) a chat forward (c) an unsigned poster (d) a guess
  2. 2.🔎 A fact about cricket in a debate on school uniforms is… (a) very specific (b) not relevant (c) very strong
  3. 3.🔎 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
  4. 4.🔎 Strong or weak evidence: the attendance register for the whole year? (a) strong evidence (b) weak evidence
  5. 5.True or false: “Everybody knows it.” is strong evidence. (a) False (b) True
  6. 6.🔎 Why is this weak evidence? “A lot of water gets wasted somewhere.” (a) not reliable (b) not relevant (c) not specific
  7. 7.🔎 Why is this weak evidence? In a debate on saving water: “My favourite colour is green.” (a) not reliable (b) not specific (c) not relevant
  8. 8.True or false: a rumour forwarded in a chat group is strong evidence. (a) True (b) False
  9. 9.🔎 Why is this weak evidence? “It is good for many reasons.” (a) not reliable (b) not specific (c) not relevant
  10. 10.🔎 What makes evidence strong? (a) old and vague (b) funny and short (c) loud and long (d) relevant and reliable
  11. 11.🔎 Strong or weak evidence: the school library’s record of books borrowed? (a) weak evidence (b) strong evidence
  12. 12.🔎 Why is this weak evidence? “A forwarded message says so.” (a) not specific (b) not reliable (c) not relevant
  13. 13.🔎 Strong or weak evidence: measured results from our class experiment? (a) strong evidence (b) weak evidence
  14. 14.True or false: “It is good for many reasons.” — this is weak because it is not specific (no who, what or how many). (a) False (b) True
  15. 15.True or false: one friend’s guess is strong evidence. (a) True (b) False
  16. 16.True or false: “Lots of people think so.” is strong evidence. (a) True (b) False
  17. 17.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
  18. 18.True or false: In a debate on reading: “Trains run on tracks.” — this is weak because it is not relevant to the topic. (a) True (b) False
  19. 19.True or false: In a debate on reading: “Trains run on tracks.” — this is weak because its source is not reliable. (a) False (b) True
  20. 20.True or false: a rumour forwarded in a chat group is weak evidence. (a) False (b) True
  21. 21.True or false: figures from the city water board is weak evidence. (a) False (b) True
  22. 22.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) False (b) True
  23. 23.🔎 Why is this weak evidence? In a debate on reading: “Trains run on tracks.” (a) not relevant (b) not specific (c) not reliable
  24. 24.🔎 Why is this weak evidence? In a debate on school gardens: “Cricket is popular in India.” (a) not reliable (b) not relevant (c) not specific
  25. 25.True or false: measured results from our class experiment is strong evidence. (a) True (b) False
  26. 26.True or false: “My cousin said so.” is strong evidence. (a) True (b) False
  27. 27.🔎 Which is more specific? (a) 30 of 40 students (b) lots of students
  28. 28.True or false: an unsigned post with no source is weak evidence. (a) False (b) True
  29. 29.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) False (b) True
  30. 30.🔎 Strong or weak evidence: one friend’s guess? (a) weak evidence (b) strong evidence
  31. 31.🔎 Strong or weak evidence: a rumour forwarded in a chat group? (a) strong evidence (b) weak evidence
  32. 32.True or false: “A forwarded message says so.” — this is weak because its source is not reliable. (a) False (b) True
  33. 33.🔎 Strong or weak evidence: an unsigned post with no source? (a) weak evidence (b) strong evidence
  34. 34.True or false: one friend’s guess is weak evidence. (a) True (b) False
  35. 35.🔎 Strong or weak evidence: “Lots of people think so.”? (a) strong evidence (b) weak evidence
  36. 36.🔎 Why is this weak evidence? “A website with no name says so.” (a) not specific (b) not relevant (c) not reliable
  37. 37.True or false: the school nurse’s record of sick days is strong evidence. (a) False (b) True
  38. 38.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) True (b) False
  39. 39.True or false: “I saw it on a random poster once.” — this is weak because its source is not reliable. (a) False (b) True
  40. 40.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

Answer key

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

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