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Debate Worksheet: Strong and Weak Evidence

Debate lesson 3: Strong and weak evidence · Set 445 · 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: “I saw it on a random poster once.” — this is weak because it is not relevant to the topic. (a) True (b) False
  2. 2.True or false: “A forwarded message says so.” — this is weak because it is not relevant to the topic. (a) True (b) False
  3. 3.🔎 Why is this weak evidence? “A website with no name says so.” (a) not reliable (b) not relevant (c) not specific
  4. 4.🔎 Strong or weak evidence: “Everybody knows it.”? (a) weak evidence (b) strong evidence
  5. 5.🔎 Why is this weak evidence? In a debate on reading: “Trains run on tracks.” (a) not relevant (b) not reliable (c) not specific
  6. 6.🔎 Strong or weak evidence: a story you are not sure about? (a) strong evidence (b) weak evidence
  7. 7.🔎 Why is this weak evidence? “Lots of students like it.” (a) not relevant (b) not reliable (c) not specific
  8. 8.🔎 Why is this weak evidence? “Studies show things.” (a) not reliable (b) not relevant (c) not specific
  9. 9.True or false: “I saw it on a random poster once.” — this is weak because it is not specific (no who, what or how many). (a) False (b) True
  10. 10.🔎 Strong or weak evidence: a rumour forwarded in a chat group? (a) strong evidence (b) weak evidence
  11. 11.True or false: figures from the city water board is strong evidence. (a) False (b) True
  12. 12.🔎 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
  13. 13.🔎 Strong or weak evidence: the school library’s record of books borrowed? (a) weak evidence (b) strong evidence
  14. 14.🔎 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
  15. 15.🔎 A fact about cricket in a debate on school uniforms is… (a) very strong (b) not relevant (c) very specific
  16. 16.True or false: “I think I dreamt it.” — this is weak because its source is not reliable. (a) False (b) True
  17. 17.🔎 Why is this weak evidence? “Some people say it helps somehow.” (a) not specific (b) not reliable (c) not relevant
  18. 18.True or false: “Everybody knows it.” is strong evidence. (a) False (b) True
  19. 19.🔎 Strong or weak evidence: measured results from our class experiment? (a) strong evidence (b) weak evidence
  20. 20.True or false: “A lot of water gets wasted somewhere.” — this is weak because it is not relevant to the topic. (a) False (b) True
  21. 21.True or false: one friend’s guess is weak evidence. (a) False (b) True
  22. 22.True or false: the school nurse’s record of sick days is weak evidence. (a) True (b) False
  23. 23.🔎 Why is this weak evidence? “A lot of water gets wasted somewhere.” (a) not reliable (b) not relevant (c) not specific
  24. 24.True or false: a story you are not sure about is strong evidence. (a) False (b) True
  25. 25.True or false: “It is good for many reasons.” — this is weak because it is not relevant to the topic. (a) True (b) False
  26. 26.True or false: a fact from our science textbook is weak evidence. (a) False (b) True
  27. 27.True or false: measured results from our class experiment is weak evidence. (a) False (b) True
  28. 28.🔎 Strong or weak evidence: a survey of 300 students in our school? (a) weak evidence (b) strong evidence
  29. 29.True or false: “Lots of people think so.” is strong evidence. (a) False (b) True
  30. 30.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) False (b) True
  31. 31.True or false: a story you are not sure about is weak evidence. (a) False (b) True
  32. 32.🔎 Before using a number in a debate, you should… (a) make it bigger (b) round it to 100 (c) hide the source (d) check where it came from
  33. 33.True or false: a rumour forwarded in a chat group is strong evidence. (a) True (b) False
  34. 34.True or false: “Everybody knows it.” is weak evidence. (a) True (b) False
  35. 35.True or false: “Lots of students like it.” — this is weak because it is not relevant to the topic. (a) False (b) True
  36. 36.🔎 Which source is most reliable in a debate on saving water? (a) the city water board (b) an unsigned poster (c) a chat forward (d) a guess
  37. 37.True or false: In a debate on reading: “Trains run on tracks.” — this is weak because its source is not reliable. (a) True (b) False
  38. 38.🔎 Which is more specific? (a) lots of students (b) 30 of 40 students
  39. 39.True or false: In a debate on school gardens: “Cricket is popular in India.” — this is weak because its source is not reliable. (a) False (b) True
  40. 40.🔎 Strong or weak evidence: “My cousin said so.”? (a) strong evidence (b) weak evidence

Answer key

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

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