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Debate Worksheet: Strong and Weak Evidence

Debate lesson 3: Strong and weak evidence · Set 41 · 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.🔎 Before using a number in a debate, you should… (a) round it to 100 (b) hide the source (c) make it bigger (d) check where it came from
  2. 2.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) True (b) False
  3. 3.🔎 Which source is most reliable in a debate on saving water? (a) a guess (b) an unsigned poster (c) a chat forward (d) the city water board
  4. 4.🔎 Which is more specific? (a) 30 of 40 students (b) lots of students
  5. 5.🔎 What makes evidence strong? (a) loud and long (b) relevant and reliable (c) funny and short (d) old and vague
  6. 6.True or false: the school library’s record of books borrowed is strong evidence. (a) True (b) False
  7. 7.True or false: a fact from our science textbook is strong evidence. (a) True (b) False
  8. 8.🔎 Strong or weak evidence: measured results from our class experiment? (a) weak evidence (b) strong evidence
  9. 9.🔎 Why is this weak evidence? “A website with no name says so.” (a) not relevant (b) not reliable (c) not specific
  10. 10.True or false: “My neighbour heard it from someone.” — this is weak because its source is not reliable. (a) True (b) False
  11. 11.🔎 Strong or weak evidence: a story you are not sure about? (a) strong evidence (b) weak evidence
  12. 12.🔎 Strong or weak evidence: a fact from our science textbook? (a) weak evidence (b) strong evidence
  13. 13.🔎 Strong or weak evidence: “Everybody knows it.”? (a) strong evidence (b) weak evidence
  14. 14.🔎 Strong or weak evidence: one friend’s guess? (a) weak evidence (b) strong evidence
  15. 15.🔎 Why is this weak evidence? “Some people say it helps somehow.” (a) not specific (b) not reliable (c) not relevant
  16. 16.True or false: In a debate on school gardens: “Cricket is popular in India.” — this is weak because it is not specific (no who, what or how many). (a) True (b) False
  17. 17.🔎 Why is this weak evidence? In a debate on reading: “Trains run on tracks.” (a) not relevant (b) not reliable (c) not specific
  18. 18.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
  19. 19.🔎 Strong or weak evidence: an unsigned post with no source? (a) weak evidence (b) strong evidence
  20. 20.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) False (b) True
  21. 21.True or false: “I think I dreamt it.” — this is weak because its source is not reliable. (a) False (b) True
  22. 22.🔎 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
  23. 23.🔎 Why is this weak evidence? “I think I dreamt it.” (a) not relevant (b) not specific (c) not reliable
  24. 24.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
  25. 25.🔎 Strong or weak evidence: a rumour forwarded in a chat group? (a) weak evidence (b) strong evidence
  26. 26.🔎 Why is this weak evidence? In a debate on saving water: “My favourite colour is green.” (a) not reliable (b) not specific (c) not relevant
  27. 27.🔎 Strong or weak evidence: the attendance register for the whole year? (a) weak evidence (b) strong evidence
  28. 28.True or false: “Lots of people think so.” is strong evidence. (a) True (b) False
  29. 29.🔎 Strong or weak evidence: the school library’s record of books borrowed? (a) strong evidence (b) weak evidence
  30. 30.True or false: one friend’s guess is weak evidence. (a) False (b) True
  31. 31.🔎 Why is this weak evidence? In a debate on homework: “Mount Everest is very tall.” (a) not specific (b) not relevant (c) not reliable
  32. 32.True or false: a survey of 300 students in our school is strong evidence. (a) False (b) True
  33. 33.🔎 Why is this weak evidence? “A lot of water gets wasted somewhere.” (a) not specific (b) not reliable (c) not relevant
  34. 34.True or false: “Lots of students like it.” — this is weak because it is not relevant to the topic. (a) True (b) False
  35. 35.True or false: a story you are not sure about is weak evidence. (a) True (b) False
  36. 36.🔎 Strong or weak evidence: a survey of 300 students in our school? (a) strong evidence (b) weak evidence
  37. 37.🔎 Strong or weak evidence: “My cousin said so.”? (a) weak evidence (b) strong evidence
  38. 38.True or false: an unsigned post with no source is strong evidence. (a) True (b) False
  39. 39.True or false: a rumour forwarded in a chat group is weak evidence. (a) True (b) False
  40. 40.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) True (b) False

Answer key

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

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