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Debate Worksheet: Strong and Weak Evidence

Debate lesson 3: Strong and weak evidence · Set 558 · 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: an unsigned post with no source? (a) weak evidence (b) strong evidence
  2. 2.🔎 Why is this weak evidence? “I think I dreamt it.” (a) not relevant (b) not specific (c) not reliable
  3. 3.True or false: “My neighbour heard it from someone.” — this is weak because it is not specific (no who, what or how many). (a) False (b) True
  4. 4.🔎 What makes evidence strong? (a) loud and long (b) funny and short (c) relevant and reliable (d) old and vague
  5. 5.🔎 Strong or weak evidence: measured results from our class experiment? (a) strong evidence (b) weak evidence
  6. 6.True or false: a fact from our science textbook is strong evidence. (a) True (b) False
  7. 7.🔎 A fact about cricket in a debate on school uniforms is… (a) not relevant (b) very strong (c) very specific
  8. 8.🔎 Which source is most reliable in a debate on saving water? (a) an unsigned poster (b) a chat forward (c) the city water board (d) a guess
  9. 9.🔎 Strong or weak evidence: the attendance register for the whole year? (a) strong evidence (b) weak evidence
  10. 10.True or false: the attendance register for the whole year is strong evidence. (a) True (b) False
  11. 11.True or false: measured results from our class experiment is strong evidence. (a) False (b) True
  12. 12.True or false: “Studies show things.” — this is weak because it is not relevant to the topic. (a) False (b) True
  13. 13.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
  14. 14.True or false: measured results from our class experiment is weak evidence. (a) False (b) True
  15. 15.True or false: a survey of 300 students in our school is strong evidence. (a) False (b) True
  16. 16.🔎 Strong or weak evidence: “Lots of people think so.”? (a) weak evidence (b) strong evidence
  17. 17.🔎 Why is this weak evidence? “Studies show things.” (a) not relevant (b) not reliable (c) not specific
  18. 18.🔎 Strong or weak evidence: “Everybody knows it.”? (a) weak evidence (b) strong evidence
  19. 19.True or false: “Studies show things.” — this is weak because it is not specific (no who, what or how many). (a) False (b) True
  20. 20.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
  21. 21.True or false: a story you are not sure about is strong evidence. (a) False (b) True
  22. 22.True or false: “My neighbour heard it from someone.” — this is weak because its source is not reliable. (a) False (b) True
  23. 23.🔎 Why is this weak evidence? “Some people say it helps somehow.” (a) not specific (b) not relevant (c) not reliable
  24. 24.🔎 Why is this weak evidence? In a debate on saving water: “My favourite colour is green.” (a) not reliable (b) not relevant (c) not specific
  25. 25.🔎 Strong or weak evidence: the school library’s record of books borrowed? (a) weak evidence (b) strong evidence
  26. 26.True or false: a story you are not sure about is weak evidence. (a) False (b) True
  27. 27.🔎 Strong or weak evidence: “My cousin said so.”? (a) weak evidence (b) strong evidence
  28. 28.True or false: In a debate on reading: “Trains run on tracks.” — this is weak because it is not specific (no who, what or how many). (a) False (b) True
  29. 29.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
  30. 30.🔎 Before using a number in a debate, you should… (a) round it to 100 (b) hide the source (c) check where it came from (d) make it bigger
  31. 31.🔎 Why is this weak evidence? “A website with no name says so.” (a) not reliable (b) not relevant (c) not specific
  32. 32.True or false: In a debate on sports periods: “Mangoes grow in summer.” — this is weak because its source is not reliable. (a) False (b) True
  33. 33.True or false: the school nurse’s record of sick days is strong evidence. (a) False (b) True
  34. 34.True or false: “My cousin said so.” is strong evidence. (a) False (b) True
  35. 35.True or false: figures from the city water board is weak evidence. (a) True (b) False
  36. 36.🔎 Strong or weak evidence: a survey of 300 students in our school? (a) weak evidence (b) strong evidence
  37. 37.🔎 Why is this weak evidence? In a debate on sports periods: “Mangoes grow in summer.” (a) not specific (b) not reliable (c) not relevant
  38. 38.🔎 Strong or weak evidence: a fact from our science textbook? (a) strong evidence (b) weak evidence
  39. 39.🔎 Strong or weak evidence: figures from the city water board? (a) weak evidence (b) strong evidence
  40. 40.True or false: “Everybody knows it.” is weak evidence. (a) False (b) True

Answer key

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

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