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Debate Worksheet: Strong and Weak Evidence

Debate lesson 3: Strong and weak evidence · Set 28 · 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: the school library’s record of books borrowed? (a) strong evidence (b) weak evidence
  2. 2.🔎 Before using a number in a debate, you should… (a) make it bigger (b) check where it came from (c) hide the source (d) round it to 100
  3. 3.🔎 Why is this weak evidence? In a debate on homework: “Mount Everest is very tall.” (a) not specific (b) not relevant (c) not reliable
  4. 4.True or false: a survey of 300 students in our school is strong evidence. (a) True (b) False
  5. 5.True or false: “A forwarded message says so.” — this is weak because it is not relevant to the topic. (a) False (b) True
  6. 6.True or false: a survey of 300 students in our school is weak evidence. (a) False (b) True
  7. 7.🔎 Strong or weak evidence: one friend’s guess? (a) strong evidence (b) weak evidence
  8. 8.True or false: a story you are not sure about is strong evidence. (a) False (b) True
  9. 9.🔎 Why is this weak evidence? In a debate on sports periods: “Mangoes grow in summer.” (a) not reliable (b) not relevant (c) not specific
  10. 10.True or false: measured results from our class experiment is weak evidence. (a) False (b) True
  11. 11.🔎 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
  12. 12.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
  13. 13.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
  14. 14.True or false: In a debate on reading: “Trains run on tracks.” — this is weak because its source is not reliable. (a) True (b) False
  15. 15.🔎 Strong or weak evidence: “My cousin said so.”? (a) strong evidence (b) weak evidence
  16. 16.True or false: a rumour forwarded in a chat group is strong evidence. (a) True (b) False
  17. 17.🔎 Strong or weak evidence: a rumour forwarded in a chat group? (a) weak evidence (b) strong evidence
  18. 18.True or false: “A website with no name says so.” — this is weak because its source is not reliable. (a) False (b) True
  19. 19.🔎 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
  20. 20.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) True (b) False
  21. 21.🔎 Strong or weak evidence: “Everybody knows it.”? (a) strong evidence (b) weak evidence
  22. 22.True or false: an unsigned post with no source is weak evidence. (a) True (b) False
  23. 23.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
  24. 24.🔎 Strong or weak evidence: a survey of 300 students in our school? (a) strong evidence (b) weak evidence
  25. 25.🔎 A fact about cricket in a debate on school uniforms is… (a) not relevant (b) very strong (c) very specific
  26. 26.True or false: one friend’s guess is weak evidence. (a) True (b) False
  27. 27.True or false: the school library’s record of books borrowed is strong evidence. (a) False (b) True
  28. 28.🔎 Which is more specific? (a) 30 of 40 students (b) lots of students
  29. 29.True or false: “My cousin said so.” is weak evidence. (a) False (b) True
  30. 30.True or false: In a debate on school gardens: “Cricket is popular in India.” — this is weak because its source is not reliable. (a) True (b) False
  31. 31.🔎 Strong or weak evidence: measured results from our class experiment? (a) weak evidence (b) strong evidence
  32. 32.🔎 Strong or weak evidence: figures from the city water board? (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.True or false: measured results from our class experiment is strong evidence. (a) False (b) True
  35. 35.True or false: In a debate on homework: “Mount Everest is very tall.” — this is weak because its source is not reliable. (a) False (b) True
  36. 36.🔎 Why is this weak evidence? “A forwarded message says so.” (a) not relevant (b) not reliable (c) not specific
  37. 37.True or false: the school nurse’s record of sick days is strong evidence. (a) True (b) False
  38. 38.🔎 Why is this weak evidence? “Some people say it helps somehow.” (a) not specific (b) not relevant (c) not reliable
  39. 39.🔎 What makes evidence strong? (a) relevant and reliable (b) funny and short (c) loud and long (d) old and vague
  40. 40.🔎 Why is this weak evidence? “My neighbour heard it from someone.” (a) not specific (b) not reliable (c) not relevant

Answer key

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

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