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Debate Worksheet: Strong and Weak Evidence

Debate lesson 3: Strong and weak evidence · Set 953 · 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 survey of 300 students in our school? (a) weak evidence (b) strong evidence
  2. 2.True or false: an unsigned post with no source 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.🔎 Why is this weak evidence? “A forwarded message says so.” (a) not relevant (b) not reliable (c) not specific
  5. 5.🔎 Why is this weak evidence? “My neighbour heard it from someone.” (a) not specific (b) not relevant (c) not reliable
  6. 6.🔎 Which is more specific? (a) 30 of 40 students (b) lots of students
  7. 7.True or false: “Everybody knows it.” is weak evidence. (a) True (b) False
  8. 8.True or false: the attendance register for the whole year is weak evidence. (a) True (b) False
  9. 9.🔎 Before using a number in a debate, you should… (a) round it to 100 (b) hide the source (c) make it bigger (d) check where it came from
  10. 10.🔎 Why is this weak evidence? In a debate on school gardens: “Cricket is popular in India.” (a) not specific (b) not reliable (c) not relevant
  11. 11.🔎 Strong or weak evidence: measured results from our class experiment? (a) weak evidence (b) strong evidence
  12. 12.True or false: “Everybody knows it.” is strong evidence. (a) True (b) False
  13. 13.True or false: “Lots of students like it.” — this is weak because it is not specific (no who, what or how many). (a) False (b) True
  14. 14.🔎 Why is this weak evidence? “It is good for many reasons.” (a) not reliable (b) not specific (c) not relevant
  15. 15.🔎 Strong or weak evidence: a story you are not sure about? (a) weak evidence (b) strong evidence
  16. 16.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
  17. 17.🔎 Strong or weak evidence: “My cousin said so.”? (a) weak evidence (b) strong evidence
  18. 18.🔎 Why is this weak evidence? “Some people say it helps somehow.” (a) not specific (b) not relevant (c) not reliable
  19. 19.🔎 Strong or weak evidence: an unsigned post with no source? (a) strong evidence (b) weak evidence
  20. 20.True or false: a story you are not sure about is weak evidence. (a) False (b) True
  21. 21.True or false: the school nurse’s record of sick days is weak evidence. (a) True (b) False
  22. 22.🔎 Strong or weak evidence: figures from the city water board? (a) weak evidence (b) strong evidence
  23. 23.🔎 Why is this weak evidence? “Studies show things.” (a) not relevant (b) not specific (c) not reliable
  24. 24.🔎 Why is this weak evidence? In a debate on sports periods: “Mangoes grow in summer.” (a) not specific (b) not relevant (c) not reliable
  25. 25.🔎 Why is this weak evidence? In a debate on homework: “Mount Everest is very tall.” (a) not relevant (b) not reliable (c) not specific
  26. 26.🔎 Strong or weak evidence: a rumour forwarded in a chat group? (a) weak evidence (b) strong evidence
  27. 27.🔎 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
  28. 28.True or false: “Studies show things.” — this is weak because its source is not reliable. (a) True (b) False
  29. 29.🔎 Why is this weak evidence? “A lot of water gets wasted somewhere.” (a) not reliable (b) not specific (c) not relevant
  30. 30.🔎 Strong or weak evidence: the school library’s record of books borrowed? (a) strong evidence (b) weak evidence
  31. 31.🔎 Strong or weak evidence: a fact from our science textbook? (a) weak evidence (b) strong evidence
  32. 32.🔎 A fact about cricket in a debate on school uniforms is… (a) very strong (b) very specific (c) not relevant
  33. 33.True or false: “Some people say it helps somehow.” — this is weak because its source is not reliable. (a) False (b) True
  34. 34.🔎 Strong or weak evidence: “Everybody knows it.”? (a) weak evidence (b) strong evidence
  35. 35.True or false: “My neighbour heard it from someone.” — this is weak because it is not specific (no who, what or how many). (a) True (b) False
  36. 36.🔎 Why is this weak evidence? In a debate on reading: “Trains run on tracks.” (a) not reliable (b) not specific (c) not relevant
  37. 37.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
  38. 38.True or false: a fact from our science textbook is weak evidence. (a) True (b) False
  39. 39.True or false: the school nurse’s record of sick days is strong evidence. (a) True (b) False
  40. 40.True or false: figures from the city water board is weak evidence. (a) True (b) False

Answer key

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

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