← Strong and weak evidence lesson New set →

Debate Worksheet: Strong and Weak Evidence

Debate lesson 3: Strong and weak evidence · Set 715 · 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: one friend’s guess? (a) strong evidence (b) weak evidence
  2. 2.True or false: “A website with no name says so.” — this is weak because its source is not reliable. (a) False (b) True
  3. 3.🔎 Strong or weak evidence: “My cousin said so.”? (a) weak evidence (b) strong evidence
  4. 4.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
  5. 5.True or false: “Everybody knows it.” is weak evidence. (a) True (b) False
  6. 6.🔎 Strong or weak evidence: a rumour forwarded in a chat group? (a) strong evidence (b) weak evidence
  7. 7.🔎 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
  8. 8.🔎 Why is this weak evidence? In a debate on school gardens: “Cricket is popular in India.” (a) not reliable (b) not relevant (c) not specific
  9. 9.🔎 Strong or weak evidence: measured results from our class experiment? (a) strong evidence (b) weak evidence
  10. 10.🔎 A fact about cricket in a debate on school uniforms is… (a) not relevant (b) very specific (c) very strong
  11. 11.True or false: In a debate on reading: “Trains run on tracks.” — this is weak because it is not specific (no who, what or how many). (a) True (b) False
  12. 12.True or false: “Lots of people think so.” is strong evidence. (a) True (b) False
  13. 13.True or false: “A lot of water gets wasted somewhere.” — this is weak because it is not relevant to the topic. (a) True (b) False
  14. 14.🔎 Strong or weak evidence: the school nurse’s record of sick days? (a) weak evidence (b) strong evidence
  15. 15.🔎 Strong or weak evidence: the school library’s record of books borrowed? (a) strong evidence (b) weak evidence
  16. 16.True or false: a story you are not sure about is strong evidence. (a) False (b) True
  17. 17.True or false: a survey of 300 students in our school is weak evidence. (a) False (b) True
  18. 18.True or false: “Studies show things.” — this is weak because it is not relevant to the topic. (a) True (b) False
  19. 19.🔎 Why is this weak evidence? “My neighbour heard it from someone.” (a) not relevant (b) not specific (c) not reliable
  20. 20.True or false: In a debate on homework: “Mount Everest is very tall.” — this is weak because its source is not reliable. (a) True (b) False
  21. 21.🔎 Why is this weak evidence? “A lot of water gets wasted somewhere.” (a) not relevant (b) not specific (c) not reliable
  22. 22.🔎 Strong or weak evidence: a fact from our science textbook? (a) weak evidence (b) strong evidence
  23. 23.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) False (b) True
  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 rumour forwarded in a chat group is strong evidence. (a) True (b) False
  26. 26.🔎 Why is this weak evidence? “Lots of students like it.” (a) not specific (b) not relevant (c) not reliable
  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? In a debate on sports periods: “Mangoes grow in summer.” (a) not specific (b) not relevant (c) not reliable
  29. 29.🔎 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
  30. 30.🔎 Which is more specific? (a) lots of students (b) 30 of 40 students
  31. 31.True or false: In a debate on homework: “Mount Everest is very tall.” — this is weak because it is not specific (no who, what or how many). (a) True (b) False
  32. 32.🔎 Why is this weak evidence? In a debate on homework: “Mount Everest is very tall.” (a) not specific (b) not relevant (c) not reliable
  33. 33.True or false: a fact from our science textbook is weak evidence. (a) False (b) True
  34. 34.True or false: “A forwarded message says so.” — this is weak because its source is not reliable. (a) False (b) True
  35. 35.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
  36. 36.🔎 Why is this weak evidence? “A website with no name says so.” (a) not specific (b) not reliable (c) not relevant
  37. 37.True or false: “Everybody knows it.” is strong evidence. (a) True (b) False
  38. 38.🔎 Strong or weak evidence: an unsigned post with no source? (a) strong evidence (b) weak evidence
  39. 39.True or false: the school library’s record of books borrowed is weak evidence. (a) True (b) False
  40. 40.🔎 Why is this weak evidence? “It is good for many reasons.” (a) not relevant (b) not reliable (c) not specific

Answer key

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

Free debate lessons, practice and worksheets at talentjr.in/debate-for-students