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Debate Worksheet: Strong and Weak Evidence

Debate lesson 3: Strong and weak evidence · Set 496 · 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 story you are not sure about? (a) strong evidence (b) weak evidence
  2. 2.🔎 Strong or weak evidence: a rumour forwarded in a chat group? (a) strong evidence (b) weak evidence
  3. 3.🔎 Why is this weak evidence? In a debate on sports periods: “Mangoes grow in summer.” (a) not relevant (b) not reliable (c) not specific
  4. 4.True or false: “Studies show things.” — this is weak because it is not specific (no who, what or how many). (a) False (b) True
  5. 5.True or false: “Everybody knows it.” is weak evidence. (a) False (b) True
  6. 6.🔎 Why is this weak evidence? “I think I dreamt it.” (a) not specific (b) not relevant (c) not reliable
  7. 7.🔎 Strong or weak evidence: a fact from our science textbook? (a) weak evidence (b) strong evidence
  8. 8.🔎 Before using a number in a debate, you should… (a) round it to 100 (b) make it bigger (c) hide the source (d) check where it came from
  9. 9.🔎 Which source is most reliable in a debate on saving water? (a) the city water board (b) a guess (c) an unsigned poster (d) a chat forward
  10. 10.True or false: “I think I dreamt it.” — this is weak because its source is not reliable. (a) True (b) False
  11. 11.True or false: “I saw it on a random poster once.” — this is weak because its source is not reliable. (a) True (b) False
  12. 12.True or false: figures from the city water board is weak evidence. (a) False (b) True
  13. 13.True or false: “Lots of people think so.” is strong evidence. (a) True (b) False
  14. 14.True or false: “Some people say it helps somehow.” — this is weak because it is not relevant to the topic. (a) True (b) False
  15. 15.🔎 Strong or weak evidence: “Everybody knows it.”? (a) strong evidence (b) weak evidence
  16. 16.🔎 Strong or weak evidence: the attendance register for the whole year? (a) strong evidence (b) weak evidence
  17. 17.🔎 Strong or weak evidence: one friend’s guess? (a) weak evidence (b) strong evidence
  18. 18.🔎 Strong or weak evidence: “My cousin said so.”? (a) weak evidence (b) strong evidence
  19. 19.True or false: a survey of 300 students in our school is strong evidence. (a) True (b) False
  20. 20.🔎 What makes evidence strong? (a) funny and short (b) loud and long (c) relevant and reliable (d) old and vague
  21. 21.🔎 Strong or weak evidence: a survey of 300 students in our school? (a) weak evidence (b) strong evidence
  22. 22.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
  23. 23.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
  24. 24.True or false: “My cousin said so.” is strong evidence. (a) False (b) True
  25. 25.🔎 Why is this weak evidence? “Studies show things.” (a) not reliable (b) not relevant (c) not specific
  26. 26.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
  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.🔎 Strong or weak evidence: the school nurse’s record of sick days? (a) weak evidence (b) strong evidence
  29. 29.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
  30. 30.True or false: a rumour forwarded in a chat group is strong evidence. (a) False (b) True
  31. 31.🔎 Strong or weak evidence: an unsigned post with no source? (a) strong evidence (b) weak evidence
  32. 32.🔎 Why is this weak evidence? In a debate on homework: “Mount Everest is very tall.” (a) not reliable (b) not specific (c) not relevant
  33. 33.🔎 Why is this weak evidence? “Some people say it helps somehow.” (a) not specific (b) not reliable (c) not relevant
  34. 34.🔎 Why is this weak evidence? “It is good for many reasons.” (a) not specific (b) not reliable (c) not relevant
  35. 35.🔎 Why is this weak evidence? “My neighbour heard it from someone.” (a) not relevant (b) not specific (c) not reliable
  36. 36.True or false: measured results from our class experiment is strong evidence. (a) False (b) True
  37. 37.🔎 Strong or weak evidence: figures from the city water board? (a) strong evidence (b) weak evidence
  38. 38.🔎 Strong or weak evidence: the school library’s record of books borrowed? (a) strong evidence (b) weak evidence
  39. 39.True or false: In a debate on homework: “Mount Everest is very tall.” — this is weak because its source is not reliable. (a) True (b) False
  40. 40.True or false: one friend’s guess is strong evidence. (a) False (b) True

Answer key

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

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