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Debate Worksheet: Strong and Weak Evidence

Debate lesson 3: Strong and weak evidence · Set 579 · 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: figures from the city water board is strong evidence. (a) False (b) True
  2. 2.🔎 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
  3. 3.🔎 Strong or weak evidence: an unsigned post with no source? (a) weak evidence (b) strong evidence
  4. 4.🔎 Which is more specific? (a) 30 of 40 students (b) lots of students
  5. 5.True or false: a fact from our science textbook is weak evidence. (a) True (b) False
  6. 6.True or false: an unsigned post with no source is strong evidence. (a) False (b) True
  7. 7.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
  8. 8.🔎 Strong or weak evidence: figures from the city water board? (a) weak evidence (b) strong evidence
  9. 9.🔎 Why is this weak evidence? “I saw it on a random poster once.” (a) not specific (b) not relevant (c) not reliable
  10. 10.True or false: figures from the city water board is weak evidence. (a) False (b) True
  11. 11.True or false: a story you are not sure about is strong evidence. (a) True (b) False
  12. 12.🔎 Why is this weak evidence? “I think I dreamt it.” (a) not reliable (b) not relevant (c) not specific
  13. 13.🔎 Strong or weak evidence: one friend’s guess? (a) strong evidence (b) weak evidence
  14. 14.🔎 Strong or weak evidence: the school nurse’s record of sick days? (a) weak evidence (b) strong evidence
  15. 15.True or false: one friend’s guess is strong evidence. (a) False (b) True
  16. 16.True or false: In a debate on reading: “Trains run on tracks.” — this is weak because it is not relevant to the topic. (a) True (b) False
  17. 17.🔎 Before using a number in a debate, you should… (a) make it bigger (b) round it to 100 (c) check where it came from (d) hide the source
  18. 18.🔎 Strong or weak evidence: a rumour forwarded in a chat group? (a) weak evidence (b) strong evidence
  19. 19.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
  20. 20.🔎 Why is this weak evidence? “A forwarded message says so.” (a) not relevant (b) not reliable (c) not specific
  21. 21.True or false: “My cousin said so.” is weak evidence. (a) False (b) True
  22. 22.True or false: the school nurse’s record of sick days is strong evidence. (a) False (b) True
  23. 23.True or false: the school library’s record of books borrowed is weak evidence. (a) False (b) True
  24. 24.True or false: In a debate on saving water: “My favourite colour is green.” — this is weak because it is not specific (no who, what or how many). (a) False (b) True
  25. 25.🔎 Strong or weak evidence: the school library’s record of books borrowed? (a) weak evidence (b) strong evidence
  26. 26.🔎 Strong or weak evidence: “Everybody knows it.”? (a) weak evidence (b) strong evidence
  27. 27.🔎 Strong or weak evidence: “Lots of people think so.”? (a) weak evidence (b) strong evidence
  28. 28.🔎 Why is this weak evidence? “My neighbour heard it from someone.” (a) not relevant (b) not reliable (c) not specific
  29. 29.🔎 Why is this weak evidence? “Some people say it helps somehow.” (a) not reliable (b) not specific (c) not relevant
  30. 30.🔎 Strong or weak evidence: a story you are not sure about? (a) weak evidence (b) strong evidence
  31. 31.True or false: an unsigned post with no source is weak evidence. (a) True (b) False
  32. 32.True or false: a survey of 300 students in our school is strong evidence. (a) False (b) True
  33. 33.🔎 Strong or weak evidence: a survey of 300 students in our school? (a) strong evidence (b) weak evidence
  34. 34.True or false: one friend’s guess is weak evidence. (a) True (b) False
  35. 35.True or false: “A forwarded message says so.” — this is weak because its source is not reliable. (a) False (b) True
  36. 36.True or false: the attendance register for the whole year is strong evidence. (a) False (b) True
  37. 37.True or false: a fact from our science textbook is strong evidence. (a) False (b) True
  38. 38.🔎 Why is this weak evidence? “A lot of water gets wasted somewhere.” (a) not specific (b) not reliable (c) not relevant
  39. 39.🔎 Strong or weak evidence: “My cousin said so.”? (a) strong evidence (b) weak evidence
  40. 40.🔎 Why is this weak evidence? “It is good for many reasons.” (a) not reliable (b) not relevant (c) not specific

Answer key

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

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