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Debate Worksheet: Strong and Weak Evidence

Debate lesson 3: Strong and weak evidence · Set 671 · 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) old and vague (b) relevant and reliable (c) loud and long (d) funny and short
  2. 2.🔎 Strong or weak evidence: one friend’s guess? (a) strong evidence (b) weak evidence
  3. 3.True or false: figures from the city water board is strong evidence. (a) True (b) False
  4. 4.True or false: “I saw it on a random poster once.” — this is weak because its source is not reliable. (a) False (b) True
  5. 5.🔎 Strong or weak evidence: a fact from our science textbook? (a) weak evidence (b) strong evidence
  6. 6.True or false: “Some people say it helps somehow.” — this is weak because it is not relevant to the topic. (a) False (b) True
  7. 7.🔎 Strong or weak evidence: “Everybody knows it.”? (a) strong evidence (b) weak evidence
  8. 8.🔎 Why is this weak evidence? “A forwarded message says so.” (a) not specific (b) not relevant (c) not reliable
  9. 9.True or false: In a debate on reading: “Trains run on tracks.” — this is weak because its source is not reliable. (a) True (b) False
  10. 10.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) True (b) False
  11. 11.🔎 Before using a number in a debate, you should… (a) round it to 100 (b) hide the source (c) check where it came from (d) make it bigger
  12. 12.True or false: a rumour forwarded in a chat group is strong evidence. (a) False (b) True
  13. 13.True or false: the school library’s record of books borrowed is strong evidence. (a) True (b) False
  14. 14.🔎 Why is this weak evidence? “I saw it on a random poster once.” (a) not reliable (b) not relevant (c) not specific
  15. 15.True or false: “Lots of people think so.” is weak evidence. (a) False (b) True
  16. 16.True or false: “Studies show things.” — this is weak because it is not specific (no who, what or how many). (a) True (b) False
  17. 17.🔎 A fact about cricket in a debate on school uniforms is… (a) very specific (b) not relevant (c) very strong
  18. 18.🔎 Strong or weak evidence: a rumour forwarded in a chat group? (a) strong evidence (b) weak evidence
  19. 19.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
  20. 20.🔎 Strong or weak evidence: the attendance register for the whole year? (a) strong evidence (b) weak evidence
  21. 21.🔎 Strong or weak evidence: figures from the city water board? (a) strong evidence (b) weak evidence
  22. 22.True or false: “My neighbour heard it from someone.” — this is weak because it is not relevant to the topic. (a) False (b) True
  23. 23.🔎 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
  24. 24.🔎 Strong or weak evidence: a story you are not sure about? (a) weak evidence (b) strong evidence
  25. 25.True or false: a story you are not sure about is weak evidence. (a) True (b) False
  26. 26.🔎 Strong or weak evidence: measured results from our class experiment? (a) weak evidence (b) strong evidence
  27. 27.🔎 Strong or weak evidence: an unsigned post with no source? (a) weak evidence (b) strong evidence
  28. 28.🔎 Why is this weak evidence? “Some people say it helps somehow.” (a) not reliable (b) not relevant (c) not specific
  29. 29.True or false: figures from the city water board is weak evidence. (a) False (b) True
  30. 30.True or false: “A forwarded message says so.” — this is weak because its source is not reliable. (a) True (b) False
  31. 31.True or false: the attendance register for the whole year is weak evidence. (a) True (b) False
  32. 32.True or false: “It is good for many reasons.” — this is weak because it is not specific (no who, what or how many). (a) False (b) True
  33. 33.True or false: a survey of 300 students in our school is strong evidence. (a) False (b) True
  34. 34.True or false: In a debate on homework: “Mount Everest is very tall.” — this is weak because its source is not reliable. (a) False (b) True
  35. 35.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) True (b) False
  36. 36.True or false: the school library’s record of books borrowed is weak evidence. (a) True (b) False
  37. 37.🔎 Strong or weak evidence: “My cousin said so.”? (a) weak evidence (b) strong evidence
  38. 38.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
  39. 39.True or false: In a debate on sports periods: “Mangoes grow in summer.” — this is weak because it is not specific (no who, what or how many). (a) True (b) False
  40. 40.🔎 Which is more specific? (a) lots of students (b) 30 of 40 students

Answer key

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

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