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Debate Worksheet: Strong and Weak Evidence

Debate lesson 3: Strong and weak evidence · Set 562 · 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.🔎 What makes evidence strong? (a) funny and short (b) relevant and reliable (c) old and vague (d) loud and long
  2. 2.True or false: “Lots of people think so.” is strong evidence. (a) True (b) False
  3. 3.True or false: “I think I dreamt it.” — this is weak because it is not relevant to the topic. (a) True (b) False
  4. 4.True or false: a rumour forwarded in a chat group is weak evidence. (a) True (b) False
  5. 5.🔎 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
  6. 6.True or false: the attendance register for the whole year is weak evidence. (a) False (b) True
  7. 7.True or false: “Everybody knows it.” is weak evidence. (a) True (b) False
  8. 8.True or false: a fact from our science textbook is weak evidence. (a) False (b) True
  9. 9.True or false: an unsigned post with no source is strong evidence. (a) True (b) False
  10. 10.🔎 Why is this weak evidence? “Studies show things.” (a) not reliable (b) not relevant (c) not specific
  11. 11.🔎 Strong or weak evidence: the school library’s record of books borrowed? (a) weak evidence (b) strong evidence
  12. 12.🔎 Strong or weak evidence: “Lots of people think so.”? (a) strong evidence (b) weak evidence
  13. 13.🔎 Strong or weak evidence: a survey of 300 students in our school? (a) strong evidence (b) weak evidence
  14. 14.True or false: “My cousin said so.” is weak evidence. (a) False (b) True
  15. 15.🔎 Strong or weak evidence: a story you are not sure about? (a) strong evidence (b) weak evidence
  16. 16.🔎 Strong or weak evidence: measured results from our class experiment? (a) strong evidence (b) weak evidence
  17. 17.🔎 Strong or weak evidence: an unsigned post with no source? (a) strong evidence (b) weak evidence
  18. 18.🔎 Before using a number in a debate, you should… (a) check where it came from (b) make it bigger (c) round it to 100 (d) hide the source
  19. 19.True or false: “Some people say it helps somehow.” — this is weak because it is not specific (no who, what or how many). (a) False (b) True
  20. 20.True or false: “Lots of people think so.” is weak evidence. (a) True (b) False
  21. 21.🔎 Why is this weak evidence? “Lots of students like it.” (a) not reliable (b) not specific (c) not relevant
  22. 22.🔎 Which is more specific? (a) lots of students (b) 30 of 40 students
  23. 23.🔎 Why is this weak evidence? In a debate on school gardens: “Cricket is popular in India.” (a) not reliable (b) not specific (c) not relevant
  24. 24.True or false: measured results from our class experiment is weak evidence. (a) False (b) True
  25. 25.🔎 Strong or weak evidence: “Everybody knows it.”? (a) weak evidence (b) strong evidence
  26. 26.True or false: “Studies show things.” — this is weak because it is not specific (no who, what or how many). (a) True (b) False
  27. 27.🔎 Why is this weak evidence? In a debate on homework: “Mount Everest is very tall.” (a) not specific (b) not relevant (c) not reliable
  28. 28.True or false: “A website with no name says so.” — this is weak because it is not relevant to the topic. (a) True (b) False
  29. 29.🔎 Which source is most reliable in a debate on saving water? (a) a guess (b) the city water board (c) an unsigned poster (d) a chat forward
  30. 30.🔎 A fact about cricket in a debate on school uniforms is… (a) not relevant (b) very strong (c) very specific
  31. 31.🔎 Strong or weak evidence: the school nurse’s record of sick days? (a) strong evidence (b) weak evidence
  32. 32.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
  33. 33.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
  34. 34.🔎 Why is this weak evidence? “I saw it on a random poster once.” (a) not relevant (b) not specific (c) not reliable
  35. 35.🔎 Strong or weak evidence: a fact from our science textbook? (a) weak evidence (b) strong evidence
  36. 36.True or false: a fact from our science textbook is strong evidence. (a) False (b) True
  37. 37.True or false: a survey of 300 students in our school is weak evidence. (a) False (b) True
  38. 38.True or false: a story you are not sure about is weak evidence. (a) False (b) True
  39. 39.True or false: In a debate on homework: “Mount Everest is very tall.” — this is weak because it is not specific (no who, what or how many). (a) False (b) True
  40. 40.True or false: In a debate on sports periods: “Mangoes grow in summer.” — this is weak because its source is not reliable. (a) True (b) False

Answer key

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

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