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Debate Worksheet: Strong and Weak Evidence

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

Answer key

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

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