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Debate Worksheet: Strong and Weak Evidence

Debate lesson 3: Strong and weak evidence · Set 357 · 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: “My cousin said so.”? (a) strong evidence (b) weak evidence
  2. 2.🔎 Why is this weak evidence? “A forwarded message says so.” (a) not specific (b) not relevant (c) not reliable
  3. 3.True or false: measured results from our class experiment is weak evidence. (a) True (b) False
  4. 4.🔎 A fact about cricket in a debate on school uniforms is… (a) very strong (b) very specific (c) not relevant
  5. 5.🔎 Strong or weak evidence: an unsigned post with no source? (a) strong evidence (b) weak evidence
  6. 6.🔎 Why is this weak evidence? “I think I dreamt it.” (a) not reliable (b) not specific (c) not relevant
  7. 7.True or false: a rumour forwarded in a chat group is weak evidence. (a) False (b) True
  8. 8.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
  9. 9.True or false: a survey of 300 students in our school is weak evidence. (a) False (b) True
  10. 10.🔎 Why is this weak evidence? “A lot of water gets wasted somewhere.” (a) not specific (b) not reliable (c) not relevant
  11. 11.🔎 Why is this weak evidence? “Some people say it helps somehow.” (a) not reliable (b) not specific (c) not relevant
  12. 12.🔎 Strong or weak evidence: a story you are not sure about? (a) weak evidence (b) strong evidence
  13. 13.True or false: “A forwarded message says so.” — this is weak because it is not relevant to the topic. (a) True (b) False
  14. 14.🔎 Why is this weak evidence? “It is good for many reasons.” (a) not reliable (b) not specific (c) not relevant
  15. 15.🔎 Strong or weak evidence: a survey of 300 students in our school? (a) strong evidence (b) weak evidence
  16. 16.🔎 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
  17. 17.True or false: a story you are not sure about is strong evidence. (a) False (b) True
  18. 18.True or false: “Lots of people think so.” is weak evidence. (a) True (b) False
  19. 19.True or false: “Lots of students like it.” — this is weak because it is not specific (no who, what or how many). (a) False (b) True
  20. 20.🔎 Why is this weak evidence? In a debate on sports periods: “Mangoes grow in summer.” (a) not specific (b) not relevant (c) not reliable
  21. 21.🔎 Strong or weak evidence: a rumour forwarded in a chat group? (a) strong evidence (b) weak evidence
  22. 22.True or false: a rumour forwarded in a chat group is strong evidence. (a) True (b) False
  23. 23.True or false: “My neighbour heard it from someone.” — this is weak because its source is not reliable. (a) True (b) False
  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: an unsigned post with no source is strong evidence. (a) False (b) True
  26. 26.True or false: figures from the city water board is strong evidence. (a) True (b) False
  27. 27.🔎 Strong or weak evidence: “Lots of people think so.”? (a) weak evidence (b) strong evidence
  28. 28.🔎 Strong or weak evidence: figures from the city water board? (a) weak evidence (b) strong evidence
  29. 29.🔎 Why is this weak evidence? “Lots of students like it.” (a) not reliable (b) not relevant (c) not specific
  30. 30.True or false: “I think I dreamt it.” — this is weak because its source is not reliable. (a) True (b) False
  31. 31.🔎 Before using a number in a debate, you should… (a) make it bigger (b) hide the source (c) round it to 100 (d) check where it came from
  32. 32.🔎 Strong or weak evidence: a fact from our science textbook? (a) weak evidence (b) strong evidence
  33. 33.🔎 Which source is most reliable in a debate on saving water? (a) the city water board (b) a guess (c) an unsigned poster (d) a chat forward
  34. 34.True or false: a fact from our science textbook is strong evidence. (a) True (b) False
  35. 35.True or false: one friend’s guess is weak evidence. (a) True (b) False
  36. 36.🔎 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
  37. 37.True or false: “A lot of water gets wasted somewhere.” — this is weak because its source is not reliable. (a) True (b) False
  38. 38.True or false: a survey of 300 students in our school is strong evidence. (a) False (b) True
  39. 39.True or false: “Some people say it helps somehow.” — this is weak because it is not relevant to the topic. (a) True (b) False
  40. 40.🔎 Why is this weak evidence? “My neighbour heard it from someone.” (a) not specific (b) not relevant (c) not reliable

Answer key

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

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