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Debate Worksheet: Strong and Weak Evidence

Debate lesson 3: Strong and weak evidence · Set 449 · 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: a survey of 300 students in our school? (a) strong evidence (b) weak evidence
  2. 2.🔎 Strong or weak evidence: a fact from our science textbook? (a) strong evidence (b) weak evidence
  3. 3.True or false: “Lots of people think so.” is strong evidence. (a) True (b) False
  4. 4.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
  5. 5.🔎 Which is more specific? (a) lots of students (b) 30 of 40 students
  6. 6.True or false: “Studies show things.” — this is weak because it is not specific (no who, what or how many). (a) True (b) False
  7. 7.True or false: a survey of 300 students in our school is weak evidence. (a) True (b) False
  8. 8.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) False (b) True
  9. 9.True or false: “A website with no name says so.” — this is weak because its source is not reliable. (a) False (b) True
  10. 10.True or false: a story you are not sure about is weak evidence. (a) True (b) False
  11. 11.True or false: “Everybody knows it.” is weak evidence. (a) True (b) False
  12. 12.🔎 Why is this weak evidence? “Lots of students like it.” (a) not reliable (b) not relevant (c) not specific
  13. 13.True or false: the attendance register for the whole year is strong evidence. (a) False (b) True
  14. 14.True or false: a rumour forwarded in a chat group is strong evidence. (a) True (b) False
  15. 15.True or false: “A forwarded message says so.” — this is weak because it is not specific (no who, what or how many). (a) False (b) True
  16. 16.True or false: figures from the city water board is strong evidence. (a) True (b) False
  17. 17.🔎 Strong or weak evidence: “My cousin said so.”? (a) weak evidence (b) strong evidence
  18. 18.True or false: “A forwarded message says so.” — this is weak because it is not relevant to the topic. (a) True (b) False
  19. 19.🔎 Strong or weak evidence: measured results from our class experiment? (a) weak evidence (b) strong evidence
  20. 20.🔎 What makes evidence strong? (a) loud and long (b) funny and short (c) old and vague (d) relevant and reliable
  21. 21.True or false: In a debate on homework: “Mount Everest is very tall.” — this is weak because it is not relevant to the topic. (a) False (b) True
  22. 22.🔎 Why is this weak evidence? In a debate on homework: “Mount Everest is very tall.” (a) not reliable (b) not specific (c) not relevant
  23. 23.🔎 Why is this weak evidence? “I saw it on a random poster once.” (a) not relevant (b) not specific (c) not reliable
  24. 24.True or false: a rumour forwarded in a chat group is weak evidence. (a) False (b) True
  25. 25.True or false: the attendance register for the whole year is weak evidence. (a) False (b) True
  26. 26.🔎 Strong or weak evidence: a story you are not sure about? (a) weak evidence (b) strong evidence
  27. 27.True or false: In a debate on saving water: “My favourite colour is green.” — this is weak because its source is not reliable. (a) False (b) True
  28. 28.🔎 Why is this weak evidence? “A lot of water gets wasted somewhere.” (a) not reliable (b) not specific (c) not relevant
  29. 29.True or false: the school library’s record of books borrowed is weak evidence. (a) True (b) False
  30. 30.🔎 Why is this weak evidence? In a debate on sports periods: “Mangoes grow in summer.” (a) not specific (b) not reliable (c) not relevant
  31. 31.🔎 Which source is most reliable in a debate on saving water? (a) the city water board (b) a guess (c) a chat forward (d) an unsigned poster
  32. 32.🔎 Before using a number in a debate, you should… (a) hide the source (b) round it to 100 (c) make it bigger (d) check where it came from
  33. 33.🔎 Strong or weak evidence: “Everybody knows it.”? (a) strong evidence (b) weak evidence
  34. 34.True or false: “My cousin said so.” is strong evidence. (a) True (b) False
  35. 35.🔎 Strong or weak evidence: “Lots of people think so.”? (a) strong evidence (b) weak evidence
  36. 36.🔎 Why is this weak evidence? In a debate on reading: “Trains run on tracks.” (a) not specific (b) not relevant (c) not reliable
  37. 37.True or false: one friend’s guess is strong evidence. (a) True (b) False
  38. 38.🔎 A fact about cricket in a debate on school uniforms is… (a) very strong (b) very specific (c) not relevant
  39. 39.True or false: “I think I dreamt it.” — this is weak because it is not specific (no who, what or how many). (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. strong evidence
  2. strong evidence
  3. False
  4. False
  5. 30 of 40 students
  6. True
  7. False
  8. False
  9. True
  10. True
  11. True
  12. not specific
  13. True
  14. False
  15. False
  16. True
  17. weak evidence
  18. False
  19. strong evidence
  20. relevant and reliable
  21. True
  22. not relevant
  23. not reliable
  24. True
  25. False
  26. weak evidence
  27. False
  28. not specific
  29. False
  30. not relevant
  31. the city water board
  32. check where it came from
  33. weak evidence
  34. False
  35. weak evidence
  36. not relevant
  37. False
  38. not relevant
  39. False
  40. True

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