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Debate Worksheet: Strong and Weak Evidence

Debate lesson 3: Strong and weak evidence · Set 601 · 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: an unsigned post with no source is weak evidence. (a) False (b) True
  2. 2.🔎 Why is this weak evidence? “Studies show things.” (a) not reliable (b) not relevant (c) not specific
  3. 3.🔎 Strong or weak evidence: a fact from our science textbook? (a) weak evidence (b) strong evidence
  4. 4.True or false: a rumour forwarded in a chat group is strong evidence. (a) True (b) False
  5. 5.True or false: “I saw it on a random poster once.” — this is weak because its source is not reliable. (a) True (b) False
  6. 6.🔎 Which is more specific? (a) lots of students (b) 30 of 40 students
  7. 7.🔎 Why is this weak evidence? In a debate on school gardens: “Cricket is popular in India.” (a) not relevant (b) not specific (c) not reliable
  8. 8.True or false: “Lots of people think so.” is strong evidence. (a) True (b) False
  9. 9.🔎 What makes evidence strong? (a) old and vague (b) funny and short (c) relevant and reliable (d) loud and long
  10. 10.🔎 Strong or weak evidence: a story you are not sure about? (a) strong evidence (b) weak evidence
  11. 11.🔎 Strong or weak evidence: measured results from our class experiment? (a) weak evidence (b) strong evidence
  12. 12.True or false: In a debate on saving water: “My favourite colour is green.” — this is weak because it is not relevant to the topic. (a) True (b) False
  13. 13.True or false: “I saw it on a random poster once.” — this is weak because it is not specific (no who, what or how many). (a) True (b) False
  14. 14.🔎 Strong or weak evidence: a survey of 300 students in our school? (a) weak evidence (b) strong evidence
  15. 15.🔎 Strong or weak evidence: a rumour forwarded in a chat group? (a) strong evidence (b) weak evidence
  16. 16.🔎 Why is this weak evidence? “Lots of students like it.” (a) not specific (b) not reliable (c) not relevant
  17. 17.🔎 Strong or weak evidence: the school nurse’s record of sick days? (a) strong evidence (b) weak evidence
  18. 18.True or false: In a debate on sports periods: “Mangoes grow in summer.” — this is weak because it is not relevant to the topic. (a) False (b) True
  19. 19.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) True (b) False
  20. 20.True or false: “Everybody knows it.” is strong evidence. (a) False (b) True
  21. 21.🔎 Strong or weak evidence: “Everybody knows it.”? (a) strong evidence (b) weak evidence
  22. 22.True or false: figures from the city water board is weak evidence. (a) True (b) False
  23. 23.True or false: “It is good for many reasons.” — this is weak because it is not relevant to the topic. (a) False (b) True
  24. 24.True or false: the school library’s record of books borrowed is strong evidence. (a) True (b) False
  25. 25.🔎 Why is this weak evidence? In a debate on reading: “Trains run on tracks.” (a) not specific (b) not reliable (c) not relevant
  26. 26.True or false: a survey of 300 students in our school is strong evidence. (a) False (b) True
  27. 27.🔎 Strong or weak evidence: “Lots of people think so.”? (a) weak evidence (b) strong evidence
  28. 28.🔎 A fact about cricket in a debate on school uniforms is… (a) very specific (b) very strong (c) not relevant
  29. 29.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
  30. 30.True or false: figures from the city water board is strong evidence. (a) False (b) True
  31. 31.🔎 Why is this weak evidence? “A lot of water gets wasted somewhere.” (a) not specific (b) not relevant (c) not reliable
  32. 32.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) True (b) False
  33. 33.🔎 Why is this weak evidence? In a debate on sports periods: “Mangoes grow in summer.” (a) not specific (b) not relevant (c) not reliable
  34. 34.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
  35. 35.True or false: a story you are not sure about is strong evidence. (a) False (b) True
  36. 36.True or false: a story you are not sure about is weak evidence. (a) False (b) True
  37. 37.True or false: “A lot of water gets wasted somewhere.” — this is weak because its source is not reliable. (a) True (b) False
  38. 38.🔎 Why is this weak evidence? “A website with no name says so.” (a) not relevant (b) not specific (c) not reliable
  39. 39.🔎 Before using a number in a debate, you should… (a) hide the source (b) round it to 100 (c) check where it came from (d) make it bigger
  40. 40.🔎 Which source is most reliable in a debate on saving water? (a) a chat forward (b) an unsigned poster (c) the city water board (d) a guess

Answer key

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

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