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Debate Worksheet: Strong and Weak Evidence

Debate lesson 3: Strong and weak evidence · Set 575 · 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.True or false: “Lots of people think so.” is weak evidence. (a) True (b) False
  2. 2.True or false: “My cousin said so.” is weak evidence. (a) False (b) True
  3. 3.🔎 Which is more specific? (a) lots of students (b) 30 of 40 students
  4. 4.🔎 Strong or weak evidence: a survey of 300 students in our school? (a) strong evidence (b) weak evidence
  5. 5.🔎 Why is this weak evidence? “Some people say it helps somehow.” (a) not relevant (b) not reliable (c) not specific
  6. 6.🔎 Which source is most reliable in a debate on saving water? (a) the city water board (b) an unsigned poster (c) a chat forward (d) a guess
  7. 7.True or false: an unsigned post with no source is weak evidence. (a) False (b) True
  8. 8.True or false: the attendance register for the whole year is weak evidence. (a) True (b) False
  9. 9.True or false: “I think I dreamt it.” — this is weak because its source is not reliable. (a) True (b) False
  10. 10.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
  11. 11.🔎 Why is this weak evidence? “Studies show things.” (a) not specific (b) not relevant (c) not reliable
  12. 12.🔎 Strong or weak evidence: a rumour forwarded in a chat group? (a) weak evidence (b) strong evidence
  13. 13.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) False (b) True
  14. 14.🔎 Why is this weak evidence? “I saw it on a random poster once.” (a) not specific (b) not relevant (c) not reliable
  15. 15.🔎 Strong or weak evidence: an unsigned post with no source? (a) strong evidence (b) weak evidence
  16. 16.True or false: “A website with no name says so.” — this is weak because it is not relevant to the topic. (a) False (b) True
  17. 17.True or false: a story you are not sure about is weak evidence. (a) True (b) False
  18. 18.True or false: “My neighbour heard it from someone.” — this is weak because its source is not reliable. (a) False (b) True
  19. 19.True or false: measured results from our class experiment is strong evidence. (a) True (b) False
  20. 20.True or false: a fact from our science textbook is weak evidence. (a) True (b) False
  21. 21.🔎 Why is this weak evidence? In a debate on saving water: “My favourite colour is green.” (a) not reliable (b) not specific (c) not relevant
  22. 22.True or false: “Studies show things.” — this is weak because it is not specific (no who, what or how many). (a) True (b) False
  23. 23.🔎 What makes evidence strong? (a) loud and long (b) old and vague (c) funny and short (d) relevant and reliable
  24. 24.🔎 Strong or weak evidence: “Lots of people think so.”? (a) weak evidence (b) strong evidence
  25. 25.🔎 Strong or weak evidence: the school library’s record of books borrowed? (a) strong evidence (b) weak evidence
  26. 26.🔎 Strong or weak evidence: a story you are not sure about? (a) strong evidence (b) weak evidence
  27. 27.True or false: a rumour forwarded in a chat group is weak evidence. (a) True (b) False
  28. 28.🔎 Strong or weak evidence: one friend’s guess? (a) weak evidence (b) strong evidence
  29. 29.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
  30. 30.🔎 Why is this weak evidence? In a debate on sports periods: “Mangoes grow in summer.” (a) not reliable (b) not specific (c) not relevant
  31. 31.True or false: the school nurse’s record of sick days is weak evidence. (a) False (b) True
  32. 32.🔎 Why is this weak evidence? “A forwarded message says so.” (a) not specific (b) not relevant (c) not reliable
  33. 33.🔎 Strong or weak evidence: measured results from our class experiment? (a) weak evidence (b) strong evidence
  34. 34.True or false: “Lots of people think so.” is strong evidence. (a) False (b) True
  35. 35.🔎 Why is this weak evidence? “It is good for many reasons.” (a) not relevant (b) not specific (c) not reliable
  36. 36.True or false: “My neighbour heard it from someone.” — this is weak because it is not relevant to the topic. (a) True (b) False
  37. 37.🔎 A fact about cricket in a debate on school uniforms is… (a) not relevant (b) very strong (c) very specific
  38. 38.🔎 Before using a number in a debate, you should… (a) check where it came from (b) round it to 100 (c) hide the source (d) make it bigger
  39. 39.True or false: “Lots of students like it.” — this is weak because it is not specific (no who, what or how many). (a) True (b) False
  40. 40.🔎 Why is this weak evidence? “A lot of water gets wasted somewhere.” (a) not relevant (b) not reliable (c) not specific

Answer key

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

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