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Debate Worksheet: Strong and Weak Evidence

Debate lesson 3: Strong and weak evidence · Set 845 · 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: a rumour forwarded in a chat group? (a) weak evidence (b) strong evidence
  2. 2.True or false: the school nurse’s record of sick days is strong evidence. (a) False (b) True
  3. 3.True or false: the school library’s record of books borrowed is strong evidence. (a) True (b) False
  4. 4.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
  5. 5.True or false: “Lots of people think so.” is strong evidence. (a) True (b) False
  6. 6.🔎 Which source is most reliable in a debate on saving water? (a) a chat forward (b) the city water board (c) an unsigned poster (d) a guess
  7. 7.🔎 Strong or weak evidence: a story you are not sure about? (a) weak evidence (b) strong evidence
  8. 8.🔎 Strong or weak evidence: “Lots of people think so.”? (a) strong evidence (b) weak evidence
  9. 9.🔎 Why is this weak evidence? “I saw it on a random poster once.” (a) not relevant (b) not specific (c) not reliable
  10. 10.True or false: “Lots of students like it.” — this is weak because it is not relevant to the topic. (a) False (b) True
  11. 11.🔎 Strong or weak evidence: an unsigned post with no source? (a) weak evidence (b) strong evidence
  12. 12.True or false: “My neighbour heard it from someone.” — this is weak because its source is not reliable. (a) True (b) False
  13. 13.True or false: the school nurse’s record of sick days is weak evidence. (a) True (b) False
  14. 14.True or false: one friend’s guess is strong evidence. (a) False (b) True
  15. 15.🔎 Why is this weak evidence? In a debate on saving water: “My favourite colour is green.” (a) not reliable (b) not relevant (c) not specific
  16. 16.🔎 Why is this weak evidence? In a debate on sports periods: “Mangoes grow in summer.” (a) not relevant (b) not specific (c) not reliable
  17. 17.🔎 Why is this weak evidence? In a debate on school gardens: “Cricket is popular in India.” (a) not reliable (b) not specific (c) not relevant
  18. 18.True or false: “Everybody knows it.” is weak evidence. (a) False (b) True
  19. 19.🔎 Strong or weak evidence: measured results from our class experiment? (a) strong evidence (b) weak evidence
  20. 20.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
  21. 21.True or false: “Some people say it helps somehow.” — this is weak because it is not specific (no who, what or how many). (a) False (b) True
  22. 22.True or false: an unsigned post with no source is weak evidence. (a) True (b) False
  23. 23.True or false: “Lots of people think so.” is weak evidence. (a) True (b) False
  24. 24.True or false: “I think I dreamt it.” — this is weak because it is not relevant to the topic. (a) True (b) False
  25. 25.🔎 Strong or weak evidence: figures from the city water board? (a) strong evidence (b) weak evidence
  26. 26.🔎 What makes evidence strong? (a) funny and short (b) loud and long (c) old and vague (d) relevant and reliable
  27. 27.🔎 Which is more specific? (a) 30 of 40 students (b) lots of students
  28. 28.🔎 Why is this weak evidence? In a debate on homework: “Mount Everest is very tall.” (a) not specific (b) not relevant (c) not reliable
  29. 29.True or false: a survey of 300 students in our school is strong evidence. (a) True (b) False
  30. 30.🔎 Strong or weak evidence: “My cousin said so.”? (a) weak evidence (b) strong evidence
  31. 31.True or false: “A website with no name says so.” — this is weak because it is not relevant to the topic. (a) False (b) True
  32. 32.True or false: “Some people say it helps somehow.” — this is weak because its source is not reliable. (a) False (b) True
  33. 33.🔎 A fact about cricket in a debate on school uniforms is… (a) very strong (b) not relevant (c) very specific
  34. 34.🔎 Why is this weak evidence? In a debate on reading: “Trains run on tracks.” (a) not reliable (b) not specific (c) not relevant
  35. 35.True or false: “A website with no name says so.” — this is weak because it is not specific (no who, what or how many). (a) True (b) False
  36. 36.🔎 Strong or weak evidence: a survey of 300 students in our school? (a) weak evidence (b) strong evidence
  37. 37.True or false: the attendance register for the whole year is weak evidence. (a) True (b) False
  38. 38.🔎 Strong or weak evidence: “Everybody knows it.”? (a) strong evidence (b) weak evidence
  39. 39.🔎 Why is this weak evidence? “A website with no name says so.” (a) not specific (b) not reliable (c) not relevant
  40. 40.True or false: a fact from our science textbook is weak evidence. (a) False (b) True

Answer key

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

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