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Debate Worksheet: Strong and Weak Evidence

Debate lesson 3: Strong and weak evidence · Set 86 · 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: “Lots of people think so.”? (a) strong evidence (b) weak evidence
  2. 2.True or false: “A lot of water gets wasted somewhere.” — this is weak because its source is not reliable. (a) False (b) True
  3. 3.🔎 Strong or weak evidence: measured results from our class experiment? (a) strong evidence (b) weak evidence
  4. 4.🔎 A fact about cricket in a debate on school uniforms is… (a) very specific (b) very strong (c) not relevant
  5. 5.🔎 Strong or weak evidence: a story you are not sure about? (a) strong evidence (b) weak evidence
  6. 6.True or false: “My neighbour heard it from someone.” — this is weak because its source is not reliable. (a) False (b) True
  7. 7.True or false: “Lots of people think so.” is strong evidence. (a) True (b) False
  8. 8.True or false: In a debate on school gardens: “Cricket is popular in India.” — this is weak because its source is not reliable. (a) False (b) True
  9. 9.True or false: the attendance register for the whole year is strong evidence. (a) True (b) False
  10. 10.🔎 Why is this weak evidence? “It is good for many reasons.” (a) not specific (b) not relevant (c) not reliable
  11. 11.True or false: In a debate on sports periods: “Mangoes grow in summer.” — this is weak because it is not relevant to the topic. (a) False (b) True
  12. 12.🔎 Which source is most reliable in a debate on saving water? (a) a chat forward (b) a guess (c) the city water board (d) an unsigned poster
  13. 13.True or false: figures from the city water board is weak evidence. (a) True (b) False
  14. 14.🔎 Strong or weak evidence: “Everybody knows it.”? (a) weak evidence (b) strong evidence
  15. 15.🔎 Why is this weak evidence? “Lots of students like it.” (a) not specific (b) not reliable (c) not relevant
  16. 16.True or false: “A website with no name says so.” — this is weak because its source is not reliable. (a) True (b) False
  17. 17.🔎 Why is this weak evidence? “Studies show things.” (a) not specific (b) not reliable (c) not relevant
  18. 18.🔎 Strong or weak evidence: the attendance register for the whole year? (a) weak evidence (b) strong evidence
  19. 19.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) True (b) False
  20. 20.🔎 Strong or weak evidence: an unsigned post with no source? (a) strong evidence (b) weak evidence
  21. 21.True or false: an unsigned post with no source is weak evidence. (a) False (b) True
  22. 22.🔎 Why is this weak evidence? In a debate on reading: “Trains run on tracks.” (a) not relevant (b) not specific (c) not reliable
  23. 23.True or false: “I think I dreamt it.” — this is weak because its source is not reliable. (a) False (b) True
  24. 24.True or false: measured results from our class experiment is weak evidence. (a) True (b) False
  25. 25.True or false: a survey of 300 students in our school is strong evidence. (a) False (b) True
  26. 26.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
  27. 27.True or false: “My cousin said so.” is strong evidence. (a) False (b) True
  28. 28.True or false: a survey of 300 students in our school is weak evidence. (a) True (b) False
  29. 29.🔎 Which is more specific? (a) lots of students (b) 30 of 40 students
  30. 30.True or false: “Everybody knows it.” is weak evidence. (a) True (b) False
  31. 31.🔎 Why is this weak evidence? “I think I dreamt it.” (a) not specific (b) not reliable (c) not relevant
  32. 32.True or false: a story you are not sure about is weak evidence. (a) True (b) False
  33. 33.True or false: the school nurse’s record of sick days is weak evidence. (a) False (b) True
  34. 34.🔎 Strong or weak evidence: a fact from our science textbook? (a) weak evidence (b) strong evidence
  35. 35.🔎 Before using a number in a debate, you should… (a) make it bigger (b) round it to 100 (c) hide the source (d) check where it came from
  36. 36.True or false: “My cousin said so.” is weak evidence. (a) True (b) False
  37. 37.🔎 Why is this weak evidence? “A forwarded message says so.” (a) not reliable (b) not relevant (c) not specific
  38. 38.🔎 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
  39. 39.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
  40. 40.True or false: “My neighbour heard it from someone.” — this is weak because it is not relevant to the topic. (a) True (b) False

Answer key

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

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