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Debate Worksheet: Strong and Weak Evidence

Debate lesson 3: Strong and weak evidence · Set 702 · 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.🔎 Strong or weak evidence: an unsigned post with no source? (a) weak evidence (b) strong evidence
  2. 2.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
  3. 3.🔎 Strong or weak evidence: the attendance register for the whole year? (a) weak evidence (b) strong evidence
  4. 4.True or false: the school nurse’s record of sick days is strong evidence. (a) False (b) True
  5. 5.🔎 Why is this weak evidence? “A website with no name says so.” (a) not reliable (b) not specific (c) not relevant
  6. 6.🔎 Which source is most reliable in a debate on saving water? (a) a chat forward (b) the city water board (c) a guess (d) an unsigned poster
  7. 7.🔎 Which is more specific? (a) lots of students (b) 30 of 40 students
  8. 8.True or false: In a debate on saving water: “My favourite colour is green.” — this is weak because its source is not reliable. (a) True (b) False
  9. 9.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
  10. 10.🔎 Strong or weak evidence: one friend’s guess? (a) strong evidence (b) weak evidence
  11. 11.True or false: “Everybody knows it.” is weak evidence. (a) False (b) True
  12. 12.True or false: a fact from our science textbook is weak evidence. (a) False (b) True
  13. 13.🔎 Strong or weak evidence: the school nurse’s record of sick days? (a) strong evidence (b) weak evidence
  14. 14.True or false: a story you are not sure about is strong evidence. (a) False (b) True
  15. 15.True or false: measured results from our class experiment is strong evidence. (a) False (b) True
  16. 16.🔎 Strong or weak evidence: the school library’s record of books borrowed? (a) strong evidence (b) weak evidence
  17. 17.🔎 Strong or weak evidence: “Everybody knows it.”? (a) strong evidence (b) weak evidence
  18. 18.True or false: measured results from our class experiment is weak evidence. (a) False (b) True
  19. 19.🔎 Strong or weak evidence: measured results from our class experiment? (a) weak evidence (b) strong evidence
  20. 20.🔎 Strong or weak evidence: a story you are not sure about? (a) strong evidence (b) weak evidence
  21. 21.🔎 What makes evidence strong? (a) funny and short (b) loud and long (c) relevant and reliable (d) old and vague
  22. 22.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
  23. 23.🔎 Why is this weak evidence? “Lots of students like it.” (a) not specific (b) not relevant (c) not reliable
  24. 24.🔎 Strong or weak evidence: a rumour forwarded in a chat group? (a) strong evidence (b) weak evidence
  25. 25.True or false: “I think I dreamt it.” — this is weak because its source is not reliable. (a) False (b) True
  26. 26.True or false: the school nurse’s record of sick days is weak evidence. (a) True (b) False
  27. 27.🔎 Strong or weak evidence: a fact from our science textbook? (a) weak evidence (b) strong evidence
  28. 28.🔎 Why is this weak evidence? In a debate on school gardens: “Cricket is popular in India.” (a) not specific (b) not reliable (c) not relevant
  29. 29.True or false: the attendance register for the whole year is strong evidence. (a) False (b) True
  30. 30.🔎 Strong or weak evidence: “My cousin said so.”? (a) strong evidence (b) weak evidence
  31. 31.🔎 Strong or weak evidence: a survey of 300 students in our school? (a) weak evidence (b) strong evidence
  32. 32.True or false: “I think I dreamt it.” — this is weak because it is not relevant to the topic. (a) True (b) False
  33. 33.True or false: “Some people say it helps somehow.” — this is weak because it is not relevant to the topic. (a) False (b) True
  34. 34.🔎 Before using a number in a debate, you should… (a) hide the source (b) check where it came from (c) round it to 100 (d) make it bigger
  35. 35.🔎 Why is this weak evidence? “I saw it on a random poster once.” (a) not reliable (b) not specific (c) not relevant
  36. 36.🔎 Why is this weak evidence? In a debate on reading: “Trains run on tracks.” (a) not specific (b) not reliable (c) not relevant
  37. 37.🔎 Why is this weak evidence? “My neighbour heard it from someone.” (a) not specific (b) not relevant (c) not reliable
  38. 38.True or false: an unsigned post with no source is weak evidence. (a) False (b) True
  39. 39.True or false: a story you are not sure about is weak evidence. (a) False (b) True
  40. 40.True or false: “I think I dreamt it.” — this is weak because it is not specific (no who, what or how many). (a) True (b) False

Answer key

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

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