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Debate Worksheet: Strong and Weak Evidence

Debate lesson 3: Strong and weak evidence · Set 540 · 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.🔎 Which source is most reliable in a debate on saving water? (a) an unsigned poster (b) a chat forward (c) a guess (d) the city water board
  2. 2.True or false: the school nurse’s record of sick days is weak evidence. (a) True (b) False
  3. 3.🔎 Why is this weak evidence? In a debate on reading: “Trains run on tracks.” (a) not reliable (b) not relevant (c) not specific
  4. 4.True or false: “Lots of people think so.” is strong evidence. (a) True (b) False
  5. 5.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
  6. 6.True or false: an unsigned post with no source is strong evidence. (a) False (b) True
  7. 7.🔎 Strong or weak evidence: a story you are not sure about? (a) strong evidence (b) weak evidence
  8. 8.🔎 Strong or weak evidence: a rumour forwarded in a chat group? (a) strong evidence (b) weak evidence
  9. 9.🔎 Strong or weak evidence: an unsigned post with no source? (a) strong evidence (b) weak evidence
  10. 10.True or false: a rumour forwarded in a chat group is weak evidence. (a) True (b) False
  11. 11.True or false: measured results from our class experiment is strong evidence. (a) True (b) False
  12. 12.🔎 Strong or weak evidence: “Lots of people think so.”? (a) weak evidence (b) strong evidence
  13. 13.🔎 Strong or weak evidence: “Everybody knows it.”? (a) weak evidence (b) strong evidence
  14. 14.🔎 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
  15. 15.🔎 Strong or weak evidence: “My cousin said so.”? (a) weak evidence (b) strong evidence
  16. 16.🔎 Which is more specific? (a) 30 of 40 students (b) lots of students
  17. 17.🔎 Why is this weak evidence? In a debate on homework: “Mount Everest is very tall.” (a) not relevant (b) not specific (c) not reliable
  18. 18.True or false: In a debate on saving water: “My favourite colour is green.” — this is weak because its source is not reliable. (a) True (b) False
  19. 19.🔎 Strong or weak evidence: a survey of 300 students in our school? (a) strong evidence (b) weak evidence
  20. 20.🔎 Strong or weak evidence: measured results from our class experiment? (a) strong evidence (b) weak evidence
  21. 21.True or false: measured results from our class experiment is weak evidence. (a) False (b) True
  22. 22.True or false: a fact from our science textbook is weak evidence. (a) False (b) True
  23. 23.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
  24. 24.True or false: “A website with no name says so.” — this is weak because its source is not reliable. (a) True (b) False
  25. 25.🔎 A fact about cricket in a debate on school uniforms is… (a) very specific (b) not relevant (c) very strong
  26. 26.True or false: In a debate on sports periods: “Mangoes grow in summer.” — this is weak because it is not relevant to the topic. (a) True (b) False
  27. 27.🔎 Strong or weak evidence: the school library’s record of books borrowed? (a) strong evidence (b) weak evidence
  28. 28.🔎 What makes evidence strong? (a) loud and long (b) old and vague (c) relevant and reliable (d) funny and short
  29. 29.🔎 Why is this weak evidence? “I saw it on a random poster once.” (a) not reliable (b) not relevant (c) not specific
  30. 30.True or false: the school library’s record of books borrowed is weak evidence. (a) False (b) True
  31. 31.True or false: the school nurse’s record of sick days is strong evidence. (a) True (b) False
  32. 32.🔎 Why is this weak evidence? “A website with no name says so.” (a) not reliable (b) not relevant (c) not specific
  33. 33.True or false: one friend’s guess is strong evidence. (a) True (b) False
  34. 34.True or false: “My cousin said so.” is strong evidence. (a) True (b) False
  35. 35.🔎 Why is this weak evidence? “I think I dreamt it.” (a) not reliable (b) not relevant (c) not specific
  36. 36.🔎 Strong or weak evidence: a fact from our science textbook? (a) strong evidence (b) weak evidence
  37. 37.🔎 Why is this weak evidence? “Some people say it helps somehow.” (a) not reliable (b) not specific (c) not relevant
  38. 38.True or false: a survey of 300 students in our school is strong evidence. (a) False (b) True
  39. 39.🔎 Why is this weak evidence? “A forwarded message says so.” (a) not relevant (b) not specific (c) not reliable
  40. 40.🔎 Why is this weak evidence? “Lots of students like it.” (a) not reliable (b) not relevant (c) not specific

Answer key

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

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