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Debate Worksheet: Strong and Weak Evidence

Debate lesson 3: Strong and weak evidence · Set 820 · 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: “Everybody knows it.”? (a) weak evidence (b) strong evidence
  2. 2.True or false: a story you are not sure about is weak evidence. (a) False (b) True
  3. 3.True or false: measured results from our class experiment is weak evidence. (a) False (b) True
  4. 4.🔎 Why is this weak evidence? “My neighbour heard it from someone.” (a) not relevant (b) not reliable (c) not specific
  5. 5.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
  6. 6.🔎 Why is this weak evidence? “Studies show things.” (a) not relevant (b) not specific (c) not reliable
  7. 7.🔎 Why is this weak evidence? In a debate on saving water: “My favourite colour is green.” (a) not specific (b) not reliable (c) not relevant
  8. 8.True or false: “Lots of people think so.” is strong evidence. (a) False (b) True
  9. 9.🔎 Strong or weak evidence: figures from the city water board? (a) strong evidence (b) weak evidence
  10. 10.🔎 Why is this weak evidence? “A forwarded message says so.” (a) not specific (b) not relevant (c) not reliable
  11. 11.True or false: “My cousin said so.” is strong evidence. (a) True (b) False
  12. 12.True or false: the school nurse’s record of sick days is weak evidence. (a) True (b) False
  13. 13.🔎 Why is this weak evidence? “A website with no name says so.” (a) not relevant (b) not specific (c) not reliable
  14. 14.🔎 Which source is most reliable in a debate on saving water? (a) the city water board (b) a chat forward (c) a guess (d) an unsigned poster
  15. 15.🔎 Why is this weak evidence? In a debate on sports periods: “Mangoes grow in summer.” (a) not relevant (b) not reliable (c) not specific
  16. 16.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
  17. 17.True or false: a fact from our science textbook is strong evidence. (a) False (b) True
  18. 18.🔎 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
  19. 19.🔎 Strong or weak evidence: a fact from our science textbook? (a) weak evidence (b) strong evidence
  20. 20.🔎 Strong or weak evidence: a survey of 300 students in our school? (a) weak evidence (b) strong evidence
  21. 21.🔎 Strong or weak evidence: “My cousin said so.”? (a) strong evidence (b) weak evidence
  22. 22.True or false: a survey of 300 students in our school is strong evidence. (a) False (b) True
  23. 23.🔎 What makes evidence strong? (a) relevant and reliable (b) old and vague (c) funny and short (d) loud and long
  24. 24.True or false: “I saw it on a random poster once.” — this is weak because it is not relevant to the topic. (a) True (b) False
  25. 25.🔎 Why is this weak evidence? “Some people say it helps somehow.” (a) not reliable (b) not relevant (c) not specific
  26. 26.True or false: the school library’s record of books borrowed is strong evidence. (a) True (b) False
  27. 27.True or false: “Lots of people think so.” is weak evidence. (a) True (b) False
  28. 28.🔎 Strong or weak evidence: a story you are not sure about? (a) strong evidence (b) weak evidence
  29. 29.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
  30. 30.True or false: “Everybody knows it.” is weak evidence. (a) True (b) False
  31. 31.True or false: a survey of 300 students in our school is weak evidence. (a) True (b) False
  32. 32.True or false: “Studies show things.” — this is weak because its source is not reliable. (a) True (b) False
  33. 33.🔎 A fact about cricket in a debate on school uniforms is… (a) very strong (b) not relevant (c) very specific
  34. 34.True or false: a rumour forwarded in a chat group is weak evidence. (a) True (b) False
  35. 35.🔎 Why is this weak evidence? In a debate on homework: “Mount Everest is very tall.” (a) not specific (b) not reliable (c) not relevant
  36. 36.🔎 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
  37. 37.🔎 Strong or weak evidence: the school nurse’s record of sick days? (a) strong evidence (b) weak evidence
  38. 38.🔎 Strong or weak evidence: the school library’s record of books borrowed? (a) weak evidence (b) strong evidence
  39. 39.🔎 Strong or weak evidence: the attendance register for the whole year? (a) weak evidence (b) strong evidence
  40. 40.🔎 Strong or weak evidence: one friend’s guess? (a) weak evidence (b) strong evidence

Answer key

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

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