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Debate Worksheet: Strong and Weak Evidence

Debate lesson 3: Strong and weak evidence · Set 377 · 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.True or false: the school nurse’s record of sick days is strong evidence. (a) False (b) True
  2. 2.🔎 Why is this weak evidence? In a debate on sports periods: “Mangoes grow in summer.” (a) not relevant (b) not specific (c) not reliable
  3. 3.🔎 Strong or weak evidence: a rumour forwarded in a chat group? (a) weak evidence (b) strong evidence
  4. 4.True or false: “It is good for many reasons.” — this is weak because it is not specific (no who, what or how many). (a) False (b) True
  5. 5.🔎 Strong or weak evidence: the school library’s record of books borrowed? (a) strong evidence (b) weak evidence
  6. 6.True or false: the school library’s record of books borrowed is strong evidence. (a) False (b) True
  7. 7.🔎 Why is this weak evidence? “I saw it on a random poster once.” (a) not specific (b) not reliable (c) not relevant
  8. 8.🔎 Strong or weak evidence: measured results from our class experiment? (a) strong evidence (b) weak evidence
  9. 9.🔎 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
  10. 10.True or false: “Everybody knows it.” is weak evidence. (a) False (b) True
  11. 11.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
  12. 12.True or false: figures from the city water board is strong evidence. (a) True (b) False
  13. 13.True or false: “Studies show things.” — this is weak because its source is not reliable. (a) True (b) False
  14. 14.🔎 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
  15. 15.🔎 Which is more specific? (a) 30 of 40 students (b) lots of students
  16. 16.🔎 Strong or weak evidence: a survey of 300 students in our school? (a) weak evidence (b) strong evidence
  17. 17.🔎 Why is this weak evidence? In a debate on homework: “Mount Everest is very tall.” (a) not reliable (b) not specific (c) not relevant
  18. 18.🔎 Why is this weak evidence? “I think I dreamt it.” (a) not relevant (b) not reliable (c) not specific
  19. 19.🔎 Strong or weak evidence: the attendance register for the whole year? (a) strong evidence (b) weak evidence
  20. 20.🔎 Strong or weak evidence: “Everybody knows it.”? (a) weak evidence (b) strong evidence
  21. 21.True or false: “I saw it on a random poster once.” — this is weak because its source is not reliable. (a) False (b) True
  22. 22.True or false: measured results from our class experiment is strong evidence. (a) True (b) False
  23. 23.True or false: a rumour forwarded in a chat group is weak evidence. (a) False (b) True
  24. 24.True or false: a survey of 300 students in our school is strong evidence. (a) True (b) False
  25. 25.🔎 A fact about cricket in a debate on school uniforms is… (a) not relevant (b) very strong (c) very specific
  26. 26.🔎 What makes evidence strong? (a) relevant and reliable (b) funny and short (c) old and vague (d) loud and long
  27. 27.True or false: measured results from our class experiment is weak evidence. (a) True (b) False
  28. 28.🔎 Before using a number in a debate, you should… (a) check where it came from (b) round it to 100 (c) make it bigger (d) hide the source
  29. 29.🔎 Why is this weak evidence? “Some people say it helps somehow.” (a) not reliable (b) not specific (c) not relevant
  30. 30.🔎 Strong or weak evidence: an unsigned post with no source? (a) strong evidence (b) weak evidence
  31. 31.🔎 Why is this weak evidence? “Lots of students like it.” (a) not specific (b) not reliable (c) not relevant
  32. 32.🔎 Strong or weak evidence: one friend’s guess? (a) strong evidence (b) weak evidence
  33. 33.True or false: “Lots of people think so.” is strong evidence. (a) True (b) False
  34. 34.🔎 Strong or weak evidence: a fact from our science textbook? (a) strong evidence (b) weak evidence
  35. 35.True or false: “I saw it on a random poster once.” — this is weak because it is not relevant to the topic. (a) False (b) True
  36. 36.True or false: “Some people say it helps somehow.” — this is weak because its source is not reliable. (a) False (b) True
  37. 37.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) False (b) True
  38. 38.🔎 Why is this weak evidence? “My neighbour heard it from someone.” (a) not relevant (b) not specific (c) not reliable
  39. 39.🔎 Why is this weak evidence? “A website with no name says so.” (a) not reliable (b) not specific (c) not relevant
  40. 40.🔎 Strong or weak evidence: the school nurse’s record of sick days? (a) weak evidence (b) strong evidence

Answer key

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

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