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Debate Worksheet: Strong and Weak Evidence

Debate lesson 3: Strong and weak evidence · Set 29 · 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: the school nurse’s record of sick days is weak evidence. (a) True (b) False
  2. 2.🔎 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
  3. 3.True or false: the attendance register for the whole year is strong evidence. (a) True (b) False
  4. 4.🔎 Strong or weak evidence: the school library’s record of books borrowed? (a) weak evidence (b) strong evidence
  5. 5.🔎 Strong or weak evidence: a story you are not sure about? (a) weak evidence (b) strong evidence
  6. 6.🔎 Strong or weak evidence: figures from the city water board? (a) strong evidence (b) weak evidence
  7. 7.🔎 Why is this weak evidence? “It is good for many reasons.” (a) not specific (b) not reliable (c) not relevant
  8. 8.🔎 Why is this weak evidence? “Studies show things.” (a) not relevant (b) not specific (c) not reliable
  9. 9.🔎 Which is more specific? (a) lots of students (b) 30 of 40 students
  10. 10.🔎 A fact about cricket in a debate on school uniforms is… (a) not relevant (b) very specific (c) very strong
  11. 11.True or false: “My cousin said so.” is strong evidence. (a) False (b) True
  12. 12.True or false: the attendance register for the whole year is weak evidence. (a) False (b) True
  13. 13.True or false: a survey of 300 students in our school is weak evidence. (a) False (b) True
  14. 14.🔎 Why is this weak evidence? In a debate on school gardens: “Cricket is popular in India.” (a) not specific (b) not reliable (c) not relevant
  15. 15.True or false: “Lots of people think so.” is weak evidence. (a) True (b) False
  16. 16.🔎 Which source is most reliable in a debate on saving water? (a) an unsigned poster (b) the city water board (c) a chat forward (d) a guess
  17. 17.🔎 What makes evidence strong? (a) old and vague (b) relevant and reliable (c) funny and short (d) loud and long
  18. 18.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
  19. 19.🔎 Why is this weak evidence? “I saw it on a random poster once.” (a) not relevant (b) not specific (c) not reliable
  20. 20.🔎 Strong or weak evidence: “My cousin said so.”? (a) weak evidence (b) strong evidence
  21. 21.True or false: figures from the city water board is strong evidence. (a) False (b) True
  22. 22.🔎 Strong or weak evidence: a survey of 300 students in our school? (a) weak evidence (b) strong evidence
  23. 23.🔎 Why is this weak evidence? “A website with no name says so.” (a) not specific (b) not reliable (c) not relevant
  24. 24.True or false: a story you are not sure about is weak evidence. (a) False (b) True
  25. 25.🔎 Why is this weak evidence? “Some people say it helps somehow.” (a) not reliable (b) not specific (c) not relevant
  26. 26.True or false: “Lots of students like it.” — this is weak because its source is not reliable. (a) False (b) True
  27. 27.True or false: “My neighbour heard it from someone.” — this is weak because it is not specific (no who, what or how many). (a) False (b) True
  28. 28.🔎 Strong or weak evidence: the school nurse’s record of sick days? (a) strong evidence (b) weak evidence
  29. 29.True or false: a fact from our science textbook is weak evidence. (a) True (b) False
  30. 30.🔎 Why is this weak evidence? “A lot of water gets wasted somewhere.” (a) not specific (b) not relevant (c) not reliable
  31. 31.🔎 Why is this weak evidence? In a debate on homework: “Mount Everest is very tall.” (a) not reliable (b) not specific (c) not relevant
  32. 32.True or false: a rumour forwarded in a chat group is strong evidence. (a) True (b) False
  33. 33.🔎 Why is this weak evidence? In a debate on saving water: “My favourite colour is green.” (a) not reliable (b) not relevant (c) not specific
  34. 34.🔎 Strong or weak evidence: a rumour forwarded in a chat group? (a) strong evidence (b) weak evidence
  35. 35.🔎 Strong or weak evidence: “Lots of people think so.”? (a) weak evidence (b) strong evidence
  36. 36.True or false: the school library’s record of books borrowed is strong evidence. (a) False (b) True
  37. 37.True or false: “A website with no name says so.” — this is weak because its source is not reliable. (a) False (b) True
  38. 38.🔎 Why is this weak evidence? In a debate on reading: “Trains run on tracks.” (a) not relevant (b) not reliable (c) not specific
  39. 39.True or false: measured results from our class experiment is weak evidence. (a) False (b) True
  40. 40.True or false: figures from the city water board is weak evidence. (a) True (b) False

Answer key

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

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