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Debate Worksheet: Strong and Weak Evidence

Debate lesson 3: Strong and weak evidence · Set 288 · 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.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
  2. 2.🔎 Strong or weak evidence: “Everybody knows it.”? (a) weak evidence (b) strong evidence
  3. 3.🔎 Why is this weak evidence? “Some people say it helps somehow.” (a) not reliable (b) not relevant (c) not specific
  4. 4.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
  5. 5.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
  6. 6.🔎 Before using a number in a debate, you should… (a) hide the source (b) check where it came from (c) round it to 100 (d) make it bigger
  7. 7.True or false: “Lots of people think so.” is weak evidence. (a) True (b) False
  8. 8.🔎 Strong or weak evidence: a story you are not sure about? (a) weak evidence (b) strong evidence
  9. 9.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
  10. 10.True or false: “My cousin said so.” is strong evidence. (a) True (b) False
  11. 11.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
  12. 12.True or false: “I saw it on a random poster once.” — this is weak because it is not relevant to the topic. (a) True (b) False
  13. 13.🔎 Why is this weak evidence? In a debate on saving water: “My favourite colour is green.” (a) not relevant (b) not specific (c) not reliable
  14. 14.True or false: the attendance register for the whole year is strong evidence. (a) False (b) True
  15. 15.🔎 Strong or weak evidence: “My cousin said so.”? (a) weak evidence (b) strong evidence
  16. 16.🔎 Why is this weak evidence? “It is good for many reasons.” (a) not relevant (b) not reliable (c) not specific
  17. 17.True or false: “Lots of students like it.” — this is weak because it is not relevant to the topic. (a) True (b) False
  18. 18.🔎 Which source is most reliable in a debate on saving water? (a) a chat forward (b) the city water board (c) an unsigned poster (d) a guess
  19. 19.🔎 Strong or weak evidence: a survey of 300 students in our school? (a) strong evidence (b) weak evidence
  20. 20.🔎 Which is more specific? (a) lots of students (b) 30 of 40 students
  21. 21.True or false: a rumour forwarded in a chat group is strong evidence. (a) True (b) False
  22. 22.True or false: a story you are not sure about is strong evidence. (a) True (b) False
  23. 23.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) True (b) False
  24. 24.True or false: “My cousin said so.” is weak evidence. (a) False (b) True
  25. 25.True or false: a survey of 300 students in our school is weak evidence. (a) False (b) True
  26. 26.True or false: In a debate on sports periods: “Mangoes grow in summer.” — this is weak because its source is not reliable. (a) False (b) True
  27. 27.True or false: measured results from our class experiment 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? In a debate on reading: “Trains run on tracks.” (a) not reliable (b) not specific (c) not relevant
  30. 30.🔎 Strong or weak evidence: the school library’s record of books borrowed? (a) weak evidence (b) strong evidence
  31. 31.🔎 A fact about cricket in a debate on school uniforms is… (a) not relevant (b) very strong (c) very specific
  32. 32.🔎 What makes evidence strong? (a) old and vague (b) loud and long (c) funny and short (d) relevant and reliable
  33. 33.🔎 Strong or weak evidence: “Lots of people think so.”? (a) weak evidence (b) strong evidence
  34. 34.🔎 Strong or weak evidence: measured results from our class experiment? (a) strong evidence (b) weak evidence
  35. 35.True or false: “Studies show things.” — this is weak because its source is not reliable. (a) True (b) False
  36. 36.🔎 Why is this weak evidence? “A lot of water gets wasted somewhere.” (a) not relevant (b) not specific (c) not reliable
  37. 37.🔎 Strong or weak evidence: the school nurse’s record of sick days? (a) strong evidence (b) weak evidence
  38. 38.True or false: “My neighbour heard it from someone.” — this is weak because its source is not reliable. (a) False (b) True
  39. 39.True or false: a story you are not sure about is weak evidence. (a) False (b) True
  40. 40.True or false: “Everybody knows it.” is weak evidence. (a) False (b) True

Answer key

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

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