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Debate Worksheet: Strong and Weak Evidence

Debate lesson 3: Strong and weak evidence · Set 382 · 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.🔎 What makes evidence strong? (a) relevant and reliable (b) old and vague (c) loud and long (d) funny and short
  2. 2.True or false: “A website with no name says so.” — this is weak because it is not specific (no who, what or how many). (a) True (b) False
  3. 3.True or false: “Lots of people think so.” is weak evidence. (a) True (b) False
  4. 4.🔎 Strong or weak evidence: measured results from our class experiment? (a) weak evidence (b) strong evidence
  5. 5.🔎 Why is this weak evidence? “I saw it on a random poster once.” (a) not relevant (b) not specific (c) not reliable
  6. 6.🔎 Before using a number in a debate, you should… (a) hide the source (b) round it to 100 (c) check where it came from (d) make it bigger
  7. 7.🔎 Strong or weak evidence: the school nurse’s record of sick days? (a) strong evidence (b) weak evidence
  8. 8.True or false: the school library’s record of books borrowed is strong evidence. (a) True (b) False
  9. 9.🔎 Strong or weak evidence: “My cousin said so.”? (a) strong evidence (b) weak evidence
  10. 10.True or false: the school nurse’s record of sick days is strong evidence. (a) False (b) True
  11. 11.True or false: the attendance register for the whole year is weak evidence. (a) True (b) False
  12. 12.🔎 Why is this weak evidence? “A forwarded message says so.” (a) not reliable (b) not relevant (c) not specific
  13. 13.True or false: figures from the city water board is strong evidence. (a) False (b) True
  14. 14.🔎 Strong or weak evidence: a survey of 300 students in our school? (a) strong evidence (b) weak evidence
  15. 15.True or false: an unsigned post with no source is weak evidence. (a) False (b) True
  16. 16.🔎 Strong or weak evidence: figures from the city water board? (a) strong evidence (b) weak evidence
  17. 17.True or false: a fact from our science textbook is weak evidence. (a) True (b) False
  18. 18.🔎 Strong or weak evidence: a rumour forwarded in a chat group? (a) weak evidence (b) strong evidence
  19. 19.🔎 Why is this weak evidence? In a debate on saving water: “My favourite colour is green.” (a) not specific (b) not relevant (c) not reliable
  20. 20.🔎 A fact about cricket in a debate on school uniforms is… (a) very strong (b) very specific (c) not relevant
  21. 21.True or false: a fact from our science textbook is strong evidence. (a) True (b) False
  22. 22.True or false: “Lots of students like it.” — this is weak because it is not relevant to the topic. (a) False (b) True
  23. 23.🔎 Why is this weak evidence? In a debate on school gardens: “Cricket is popular in India.” (a) not relevant (b) not specific (c) not reliable
  24. 24.True or false: “Everybody knows it.” is weak evidence. (a) False (b) True
  25. 25.🔎 Why is this weak evidence? “Some people say it helps somehow.” (a) not specific (b) not relevant (c) not reliable
  26. 26.True or false: “My cousin said so.” is weak evidence. (a) False (b) True
  27. 27.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
  28. 28.🔎 Why is this weak evidence? In a debate on sports periods: “Mangoes grow in summer.” (a) not reliable (b) not specific (c) not relevant
  29. 29.🔎 Strong or weak evidence: “Lots of people think so.”? (a) weak evidence (b) strong evidence
  30. 30.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
  31. 31.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
  32. 32.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
  33. 33.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) False (b) True
  34. 34.True or false: the attendance register for the whole year is strong evidence. (a) False (b) True
  35. 35.🔎 Which is more specific? (a) lots of students (b) 30 of 40 students
  36. 36.🔎 Why is this weak evidence? “It is good for many reasons.” (a) not relevant (b) not reliable (c) not specific
  37. 37.True or false: “It is good for many reasons.” — this is weak because its source is not reliable. (a) False (b) True
  38. 38.True or false: measured results from our class experiment is strong evidence. (a) True (b) False
  39. 39.True or false: the school library’s record of books borrowed is weak evidence. (a) True (b) False
  40. 40.🔎 Strong or weak evidence: a fact from our science textbook? (a) weak evidence (b) strong evidence

Answer key

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

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