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Debate Worksheet: Strong and Weak Evidence

Debate lesson 3: Strong and weak evidence · Set 329 · 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.🔎 A fact about cricket in a debate on school uniforms is… (a) very specific (b) not relevant (c) very strong
  2. 2.True or false: “Studies show things.” — this is weak because it is not specific (no who, what or how many). (a) True (b) False
  3. 3.🔎 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
  4. 4.🔎 Why is this weak evidence? “It is good for many reasons.” (a) not relevant (b) not reliable (c) not specific
  5. 5.🔎 Why is this weak evidence? “Lots of students like it.” (a) not specific (b) not relevant (c) not reliable
  6. 6.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) False (b) True
  7. 7.True or false: “Lots of people think so.” is weak evidence. (a) False (b) True
  8. 8.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
  9. 9.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
  10. 10.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
  11. 11.True or false: figures from the city water board is strong evidence. (a) True (b) False
  12. 12.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) True (b) False
  13. 13.🔎 Why is this weak evidence? “Some people say it helps somehow.” (a) not specific (b) not reliable (c) not relevant
  14. 14.🔎 Why is this weak evidence? In a debate on sports periods: “Mangoes grow in summer.” (a) not relevant (b) not reliable (c) not specific
  15. 15.🔎 Why is this weak evidence? In a debate on saving water: “My favourite colour is green.” (a) not reliable (b) not specific (c) not relevant
  16. 16.True or false: In a debate on saving water: “My favourite colour is green.” — this is weak because it is not relevant to the topic. (a) True (b) False
  17. 17.🔎 Before using a number in a debate, you should… (a) check where it came from (b) make it bigger (c) round it to 100 (d) hide the source
  18. 18.🔎 Which is more specific? (a) lots of students (b) 30 of 40 students
  19. 19.🔎 Strong or weak evidence: measured results from our class experiment? (a) strong evidence (b) weak evidence
  20. 20.🔎 Strong or weak evidence: “Everybody knows it.”? (a) strong evidence (b) weak evidence
  21. 21.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
  22. 22.🔎 Strong or weak evidence: the attendance register for the whole year? (a) strong evidence (b) weak evidence
  23. 23.🔎 Strong or weak evidence: a survey of 300 students in our school? (a) strong evidence (b) weak evidence
  24. 24.True or false: the school nurse’s record of sick days is strong evidence. (a) False (b) True
  25. 25.True or false: a survey of 300 students in our school is strong evidence. (a) False (b) True
  26. 26.🔎 Strong or weak evidence: a fact from our science textbook? (a) weak evidence (b) strong evidence
  27. 27.True or false: “Everybody knows it.” is strong evidence. (a) False (b) True
  28. 28.True or false: “Lots of people think so.” is strong evidence. (a) True (b) False
  29. 29.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
  30. 30.🔎 Why is this weak evidence? “Studies show things.” (a) not relevant (b) not reliable (c) not specific
  31. 31.True or false: one friend’s guess is strong evidence. (a) True (b) False
  32. 32.True or false: the attendance register for the whole year is weak evidence. (a) False (b) True
  33. 33.🔎 Why is this weak evidence? In a debate on school gardens: “Cricket is popular in India.” (a) not relevant (b) not reliable (c) not specific
  34. 34.True or false: “I think I dreamt it.” — this is weak because it is not relevant to the topic. (a) False (b) True
  35. 35.True or false: a fact from our science textbook is weak evidence. (a) True (b) False
  36. 36.🔎 Why is this weak evidence? “A lot of water gets wasted somewhere.” (a) not reliable (b) not relevant (c) not specific
  37. 37.🔎 What makes evidence strong? (a) relevant and reliable (b) old and vague (c) funny and short (d) loud and long
  38. 38.True or false: the school nurse’s record of sick days is weak evidence. (a) False (b) True
  39. 39.True or false: a rumour forwarded in a chat group is weak evidence. (a) False (b) True
  40. 40.🔎 Strong or weak evidence: “Lots of people think so.”? (a) weak evidence (b) strong evidence

Answer key

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

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