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Debate Worksheet: Strong and Weak Evidence

Debate lesson 3: Strong and weak evidence · Set 340 · 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) very strong (c) not relevant
  2. 2.🔎 Why is this weak evidence? In a debate on sports periods: “Mangoes grow in summer.” (a) not specific (b) not relevant (c) not reliable
  3. 3.🔎 Strong or weak evidence: measured results from our class experiment? (a) weak evidence (b) strong evidence
  4. 4.🔎 What makes evidence strong? (a) loud and long (b) relevant and reliable (c) funny and short (d) old and vague
  5. 5.True or false: “It is good for many reasons.” — this is weak because its source is not reliable. (a) False (b) True
  6. 6.🔎 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
  7. 7.True or false: “I think I dreamt it.” — this is weak because its source is not reliable. (a) False (b) True
  8. 8.🔎 Strong or weak evidence: a fact from our science textbook? (a) weak evidence (b) strong evidence
  9. 9.True or false: an unsigned post with no source is strong evidence. (a) True (b) False
  10. 10.🔎 Strong or weak evidence: the school nurse’s record of sick days? (a) strong evidence (b) weak evidence
  11. 11.True or false: “My cousin said so.” is weak evidence. (a) False (b) True
  12. 12.True or false: one friend’s guess is strong evidence. (a) True (b) False
  13. 13.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) True (b) False
  14. 14.True or false: “My cousin said so.” is strong evidence. (a) False (b) True
  15. 15.True or false: the school library’s record of books borrowed is weak evidence. (a) False (b) True
  16. 16.🔎 Strong or weak evidence: the school library’s record of books borrowed? (a) weak evidence (b) strong evidence
  17. 17.True or false: the attendance register for the whole year is strong evidence. (a) False (b) True
  18. 18.True or false: a survey of 300 students in our school is strong evidence. (a) True (b) False
  19. 19.True or false: the school nurse’s record of sick days is weak evidence. (a) True (b) False
  20. 20.True or false: the school nurse’s record of sick days is strong evidence. (a) False (b) True
  21. 21.🔎 Why is this weak evidence? “Lots of students like it.” (a) not reliable (b) not specific (c) not relevant
  22. 22.True or false: one friend’s guess is weak evidence. (a) False (b) True
  23. 23.🔎 Which source is most reliable in a debate on saving water? (a) an unsigned poster (b) a guess (c) the city water board (d) a chat forward
  24. 24.True or false: the attendance register for the whole year is weak evidence. (a) False (b) True
  25. 25.True or false: a fact from our science textbook is weak evidence. (a) False (b) True
  26. 26.True or false: “A lot of water gets wasted somewhere.” — this is weak because it is not relevant to the topic. (a) True (b) False
  27. 27.🔎 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
  28. 28.True or false: a story you are not sure about is weak evidence. (a) True (b) False
  29. 29.🔎 Which is more specific? (a) lots of students (b) 30 of 40 students
  30. 30.🔎 Before using a number in a debate, you should… (a) round it to 100 (b) check where it came from (c) hide the source (d) make it bigger
  31. 31.True or false: measured results from our class experiment is weak evidence. (a) True (b) False
  32. 32.True or false: an unsigned post with no source is weak evidence. (a) True (b) False
  33. 33.True or false: “My neighbour heard it from someone.” — this is weak because it is not relevant to the topic. (a) True (b) False
  34. 34.True or false: “Some people say it helps somehow.” — this is weak because its source is not reliable. (a) False (b) True
  35. 35.🔎 Strong or weak evidence: “My cousin said so.”? (a) strong evidence (b) weak evidence
  36. 36.🔎 Strong or weak evidence: “Everybody knows it.”? (a) weak evidence (b) strong evidence
  37. 37.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
  38. 38.🔎 Why is this weak evidence? “A lot of water gets wasted somewhere.” (a) not relevant (b) not specific (c) not reliable
  39. 39.True or false: In a debate on reading: “Trains run on tracks.” — this is weak because it is not relevant to the topic. (a) True (b) False
  40. 40.🔎 Why is this weak evidence? “Studies show things.” (a) not relevant (b) not specific (c) not reliable

Answer key

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

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