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Debate Worksheet: Strong and Weak Evidence

Debate lesson 3: Strong and weak evidence · Set 327 · 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? “It is good for many reasons.” (a) not reliable (b) not relevant (c) not specific
  2. 2.🔎 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
  3. 3.🔎 A fact about cricket in a debate on school uniforms is… (a) not relevant (b) very strong (c) very specific
  4. 4.True or false: one friend’s guess is strong evidence. (a) True (b) False
  5. 5.🔎 Why is this weak evidence? In a debate on saving water: “My favourite colour is green.” (a) not specific (b) not reliable (c) not relevant
  6. 6.True or false: a survey of 300 students in our school is weak evidence. (a) False (b) True
  7. 7.True or false: In a debate on saving water: “My favourite colour is green.” — this is weak because its source is not reliable. (a) False (b) True
  8. 8.🔎 Why is this weak evidence? “My neighbour heard it from someone.” (a) not relevant (b) not specific (c) not reliable
  9. 9.True or false: In a debate on sports periods: “Mangoes grow in summer.” — this is weak because it is not relevant to the topic. (a) True (b) False
  10. 10.True or false: “I saw it on a random poster once.” — this is weak because its source is not reliable. (a) False (b) True
  11. 11.🔎 Strong or weak evidence: a fact from our science textbook? (a) strong evidence (b) weak evidence
  12. 12.True or false: the school nurse’s record of sick days is strong evidence. (a) True (b) False
  13. 13.🔎 Which source is most reliable in a debate on saving water? (a) a chat forward (b) a guess (c) the city water board (d) an unsigned poster
  14. 14.🔎 Why is this weak evidence? “A website with no name says so.” (a) not relevant (b) not specific (c) not reliable
  15. 15.True or false: the attendance register for the whole year is weak evidence. (a) False (b) True
  16. 16.True or false: “A lot of water gets wasted somewhere.” — this is weak because its source is not reliable. (a) True (b) False
  17. 17.🔎 Strong or weak evidence: a survey of 300 students in our school? (a) weak evidence (b) strong evidence
  18. 18.True or false: one friend’s guess is weak evidence. (a) False (b) True
  19. 19.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
  20. 20.🔎 Why is this weak evidence? In a debate on sports periods: “Mangoes grow in summer.” (a) not relevant (b) not reliable (c) not specific
  21. 21.🔎 Strong or weak evidence: “My cousin said so.”? (a) weak evidence (b) strong evidence
  22. 22.True or false: measured results from our class experiment is strong evidence. (a) False (b) True
  23. 23.🔎 Why is this weak evidence? “Some people say it helps somehow.” (a) not reliable (b) not relevant (c) not specific
  24. 24.🔎 What makes evidence strong? (a) loud and long (b) old and vague (c) funny and short (d) relevant and reliable
  25. 25.True or false: a fact from our science textbook is strong evidence. (a) True (b) False
  26. 26.True or false: “A website with no name says so.” — this is weak because its source is not reliable. (a) False (b) True
  27. 27.True or false: “Everybody knows it.” 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: a fact from our science textbook is weak evidence. (a) True (b) False
  30. 30.🔎 Strong or weak evidence: “Lots of people think so.”? (a) weak evidence (b) strong evidence
  31. 31.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
  32. 32.True or false: “My neighbour heard it from someone.” — this is weak because it is not specific (no who, what or how many). (a) True (b) False
  33. 33.True or false: the school nurse’s record of sick days is weak evidence. (a) False (b) True
  34. 34.True or false: the attendance register for the whole year is strong evidence. (a) False (b) True
  35. 35.True or false: a rumour forwarded in a chat group is weak evidence. (a) False (b) True
  36. 36.True or false: “A website with no name says so.” — this is weak because it is not specific (no who, what or how many). (a) False (b) True
  37. 37.🔎 Why is this weak evidence? In a debate on school gardens: “Cricket is popular in India.” (a) not specific (b) not relevant (c) not reliable
  38. 38.🔎 Why is this weak evidence? “A forwarded message says so.” (a) not relevant (b) not reliable (c) not specific
  39. 39.🔎 Strong or weak evidence: an unsigned post with no source? (a) weak evidence (b) strong evidence
  40. 40.True or false: a story you are not sure about is strong evidence. (a) True (b) False

Answer key

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

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