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Debate Worksheet: Strong and Weak Evidence

Debate lesson 3: Strong and weak evidence · Set 276 · 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? “A forwarded message says so.” (a) not reliable (b) not relevant (c) not specific
  2. 2.🔎 Why is this weak evidence? In a debate on sports periods: “Mangoes grow in summer.” (a) not reliable (b) not specific (c) not relevant
  3. 3.🔎 Before using a number in a debate, you should… (a) round it to 100 (b) check where it came from (c) make it bigger (d) hide the source
  4. 4.🔎 Why is this weak evidence? In a debate on homework: “Mount Everest is very tall.” (a) not specific (b) not reliable (c) not relevant
  5. 5.True or false: the attendance register for the whole year is strong evidence. (a) False (b) True
  6. 6.🔎 A fact about cricket in a debate on school uniforms is… (a) very strong (b) very specific (c) not relevant
  7. 7.🔎 Strong or weak evidence: the school nurse’s record of sick days? (a) strong evidence (b) weak evidence
  8. 8.True or false: the school library’s record of books borrowed is weak evidence. (a) False (b) True
  9. 9.🔎 Which is more specific? (a) 30 of 40 students (b) lots of students
  10. 10.True or false: “My cousin said so.” is weak evidence. (a) False (b) True
  11. 11.True or false: “I think I dreamt it.” — this is weak because its source is not reliable. (a) False (b) True
  12. 12.🔎 Why is this weak evidence? In a debate on saving water: “My favourite colour is green.” (a) not specific (b) not relevant (c) not reliable
  13. 13.True or false: “Studies show things.” — this is weak because it is not relevant to the topic. (a) False (b) True
  14. 14.True or false: “Lots of students like it.” — this is weak because its source is not reliable. (a) False (b) True
  15. 15.🔎 Which source is most reliable in a debate on saving water? (a) an unsigned poster (b) a guess (c) a chat forward (d) the city water board
  16. 16.🔎 What makes evidence strong? (a) relevant and reliable (b) loud and long (c) old and vague (d) funny and short
  17. 17.True or false: In a debate on reading: “Trains run on tracks.” — this is weak because it is not specific (no who, what or how many). (a) False (b) True
  18. 18.🔎 Strong or weak evidence: one friend’s guess? (a) weak evidence (b) strong evidence
  19. 19.🔎 Strong or weak evidence: figures from the city water board? (a) weak evidence (b) strong evidence
  20. 20.🔎 Why is this weak evidence? “Some people say it helps somehow.” (a) not relevant (b) not specific (c) not reliable
  21. 21.True or false: an unsigned post with no source is strong evidence. (a) True (b) False
  22. 22.True or false: measured results from our class experiment is weak evidence. (a) False (b) True
  23. 23.True or false: figures from the city water board is weak evidence. (a) False (b) True
  24. 24.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
  25. 25.True or false: the attendance register for the whole year is weak evidence. (a) True (b) False
  26. 26.True or false: “My neighbour heard it from someone.” — this is weak because its source is not reliable. (a) True (b) False
  27. 27.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
  28. 28.True or false: an unsigned post with no source is weak evidence. (a) False (b) True
  29. 29.True or false: the school nurse’s record of sick days is weak evidence. (a) True (b) False
  30. 30.True or false: a fact from our science textbook is weak evidence. (a) True (b) False
  31. 31.🔎 Strong or weak evidence: a rumour forwarded in a chat group? (a) strong evidence (b) weak evidence
  32. 32.True or false: “Lots of people think so.” is strong evidence. (a) True (b) False
  33. 33.🔎 Strong or weak evidence: a fact from our science textbook? (a) weak evidence (b) strong evidence
  34. 34.🔎 Why is this weak evidence? In a debate on reading: “Trains run on tracks.” (a) not reliable (b) not relevant (c) not specific
  35. 35.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
  36. 36.True or false: “It is good for many reasons.” — this is weak because it is not specific (no who, what or how many). (a) True (b) False
  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: “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
  39. 39.True or false: a rumour forwarded in a chat group is weak evidence. (a) False (b) True
  40. 40.True or false: “Everybody knows it.” is strong evidence. (a) True (b) False

Answer key

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

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