← Strong and weak evidence lesson New set →

Debate Worksheet: Strong and Weak Evidence

Debate lesson 3: Strong and weak evidence · Set 741 · 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.🔎 Why is this weak evidence? “Lots of students like it.” (a) not specific (b) not relevant (c) not reliable
  2. 2.True or false: “Studies show things.” — this is weak because it is not specific (no who, what or how many). (a) True (b) False
  3. 3.🔎 Which is more specific? (a) 30 of 40 students (b) lots of students
  4. 4.🔎 Which source is most reliable in a debate on saving water? (a) a guess (b) a chat forward (c) an unsigned poster (d) the city water board
  5. 5.True or false: measured results from our class experiment is weak evidence. (a) True (b) False
  6. 6.🔎 Before using a number in a debate, you should… (a) make it bigger (b) hide the source (c) check where it came from (d) round it to 100
  7. 7.True or false: an unsigned post with no source is strong evidence. (a) False (b) True
  8. 8.True or false: a rumour forwarded in a chat group is strong evidence. (a) True (b) False
  9. 9.True or false: “Lots of people think so.” is weak evidence. (a) False (b) True
  10. 10.True or false: an unsigned post with no source is weak evidence. (a) False (b) True
  11. 11.🔎 Why is this weak evidence? In a debate on saving water: “My favourite colour is green.” (a) not reliable (b) not specific (c) not relevant
  12. 12.🔎 What makes evidence strong? (a) relevant and reliable (b) funny and short (c) old and vague (d) loud and long
  13. 13.🔎 Why is this weak evidence? In a debate on school gardens: “Cricket is popular in India.” (a) not relevant (b) not reliable (c) not specific
  14. 14.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
  15. 15.🔎 Strong or weak evidence: measured results from our class experiment? (a) weak evidence (b) strong evidence
  16. 16.True or false: figures from the city water board is strong evidence. (a) True (b) False
  17. 17.True or false: “A forwarded message says so.” — this is weak because its source is not reliable. (a) False (b) True
  18. 18.True or false: measured results from our class experiment is strong evidence. (a) True (b) False
  19. 19.🔎 Strong or weak evidence: “Everybody knows it.”? (a) weak evidence (b) strong evidence
  20. 20.True or false: the school library’s record of books borrowed is strong evidence. (a) False (b) True
  21. 21.🔎 Strong or weak evidence: “My cousin said so.”? (a) weak evidence (b) strong evidence
  22. 22.🔎 Strong or weak evidence: a fact from our science textbook? (a) strong evidence (b) weak evidence
  23. 23.🔎 A fact about cricket in a debate on school uniforms is… (a) very strong (b) not relevant (c) very specific
  24. 24.🔎 Strong or weak evidence: a survey of 300 students in our school? (a) weak evidence (b) strong evidence
  25. 25.🔎 Why is this weak evidence? “A lot of water gets wasted somewhere.” (a) not relevant (b) not specific (c) not reliable
  26. 26.🔎 Strong or weak evidence: a rumour forwarded in a chat group? (a) strong evidence (b) weak evidence
  27. 27.True or false: In a debate on reading: “Trains run on tracks.” — this is weak because it is not relevant to the topic. (a) False (b) True
  28. 28.🔎 Why is this weak evidence? In a debate on reading: “Trains run on tracks.” (a) not reliable (b) not specific (c) not relevant
  29. 29.🔎 Strong or weak evidence: figures from the city water board? (a) weak evidence (b) strong evidence
  30. 30.True or false: “My neighbour heard it from someone.” — this is weak because its source is not reliable. (a) False (b) True
  31. 31.🔎 Strong or weak evidence: “Lots of people think so.”? (a) weak evidence (b) strong evidence
  32. 32.🔎 Why is this weak evidence? “Studies show things.” (a) not relevant (b) not specific (c) not reliable
  33. 33.True or false: “Studies show things.” — this is weak because its source is not reliable. (a) False (b) True
  34. 34.True or false: “A website with no name says so.” — this is weak because its source is not reliable. (a) True (b) False
  35. 35.True or false: the school library’s record of books borrowed is weak evidence. (a) True (b) False
  36. 36.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) False (b) True
  37. 37.🔎 Strong or weak evidence: a story you are not sure about? (a) weak evidence (b) strong evidence
  38. 38.True or false: a rumour forwarded in a chat group is weak evidence. (a) True (b) False
  39. 39.🔎 Why is this weak evidence? “Some people say it helps somehow.” (a) not relevant (b) not specific (c) not reliable
  40. 40.True or false: “Everybody knows it.” is weak evidence. (a) False (b) True

Answer key

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

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