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Debate Worksheet: Strong and Weak Evidence

Debate lesson 3: Strong and weak evidence · Set 578 · 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 guess (c) the city water board (d) a chat forward
  2. 2.🔎 Why is this weak evidence? “A website with no name says so.” (a) not specific (b) not relevant (c) not reliable
  3. 3.🔎 Strong or weak evidence: a rumour forwarded in a chat group? (a) weak evidence (b) strong evidence
  4. 4.🔎 Strong or weak evidence: a story you are not sure about? (a) weak evidence (b) strong evidence
  5. 5.🔎 Strong or weak evidence: the attendance register for the whole year? (a) weak evidence (b) strong evidence
  6. 6.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
  7. 7.🔎 Strong or weak evidence: one friend’s guess? (a) weak evidence (b) strong evidence
  8. 8.🔎 Which is more specific? (a) lots of students (b) 30 of 40 students
  9. 9.🔎 Before using a number in a debate, you should… (a) hide the source (b) make it bigger (c) check where it came from (d) round it to 100
  10. 10.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
  11. 11.🔎 Why is this weak evidence? “My neighbour heard it from someone.” (a) not specific (b) not reliable (c) not relevant
  12. 12.True or false: In a debate on school gardens: “Cricket is popular in India.” — this is weak because its source is not reliable. (a) True (b) False
  13. 13.🔎 Strong or weak evidence: the school nurse’s record of sick days? (a) weak evidence (b) strong evidence
  14. 14.True or false: “A lot of water gets wasted somewhere.” — this is weak because it is not specific (no who, what or how many). (a) False (b) True
  15. 15.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
  16. 16.🔎 Why is this weak evidence? In a debate on homework: “Mount Everest is very tall.” (a) not reliable (b) not relevant (c) not specific
  17. 17.True or false: “Everybody knows it.” is weak evidence. (a) False (b) True
  18. 18.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
  19. 19.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
  20. 20.🔎 What makes evidence strong? (a) relevant and reliable (b) old and vague (c) loud and long (d) funny and short
  21. 21.True or false: a story you are not sure about is strong evidence. (a) False (b) True
  22. 22.True or false: a fact from our science textbook is weak evidence. (a) True (b) False
  23. 23.True or false: “My neighbour heard it from someone.” — this is weak because its source is not reliable. (a) False (b) True
  24. 24.🔎 Strong or weak evidence: an unsigned post with no source? (a) strong evidence (b) weak evidence
  25. 25.True or false: the school nurse’s record of sick days is weak evidence. (a) False (b) True
  26. 26.🔎 Why is this weak evidence? In a debate on reading: “Trains run on tracks.” (a) not reliable (b) not specific (c) not relevant
  27. 27.True or false: a fact from our science textbook is strong evidence. (a) True (b) False
  28. 28.🔎 Why is this weak evidence? “Some people say it helps somehow.” (a) not relevant (b) not specific (c) not reliable
  29. 29.🔎 Why is this weak evidence? “A forwarded message says so.” (a) not specific (b) not reliable (c) not relevant
  30. 30.True or false: “A lot of water gets wasted somewhere.” — this is weak because it is not relevant to the topic. (a) False (b) True
  31. 31.🔎 Strong or weak evidence: measured results from our class experiment? (a) weak evidence (b) strong evidence
  32. 32.True or false: “A forwarded message says so.” — this is weak because its source is not reliable. (a) False (b) True
  33. 33.True or false: one friend’s guess is strong evidence. (a) True (b) False
  34. 34.🔎 Why is this weak evidence? “Studies show things.” (a) not relevant (b) not specific (c) not reliable
  35. 35.True or false: “Lots of people think so.” is strong evidence. (a) True (b) False
  36. 36.True or false: “Lots of people think so.” is weak evidence. (a) False (b) True
  37. 37.True or false: “My cousin said so.” is weak evidence. (a) False (b) True
  38. 38.True or false: “I saw it on a random poster once.” — this is weak because its source is not reliable. (a) True (b) False
  39. 39.True or false: the school library’s record of books borrowed is strong evidence. (a) True (b) False
  40. 40.🔎 Strong or weak evidence: “My cousin said so.”? (a) weak evidence (b) strong evidence

Answer key

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

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