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Debate Worksheet: Strong and Weak Evidence

Debate lesson 3: Strong and weak evidence · Set 981 · 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.🔎 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
  2. 2.True or false: “I saw it on a random poster once.” — this is weak because it is not specific (no who, what or how many). (a) False (b) True
  3. 3.🔎 Strong or weak evidence: the school library’s record of books borrowed? (a) weak evidence (b) strong evidence
  4. 4.🔎 Strong or weak evidence: the attendance register for the whole year? (a) strong evidence (b) weak evidence
  5. 5.True or false: figures from the city water board is weak evidence. (a) False (b) True
  6. 6.🔎 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
  7. 7.🔎 A fact about cricket in a debate on school uniforms is… (a) very strong (b) not relevant (c) very specific
  8. 8.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
  9. 9.True or false: an unsigned post with no source is strong evidence. (a) True (b) False
  10. 10.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
  11. 11.True or false: measured results from our class experiment is weak evidence. (a) True (b) False
  12. 12.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
  13. 13.True or false: the school library’s record of books borrowed is strong evidence. (a) True (b) False
  14. 14.🔎 Why is this weak evidence? “My neighbour heard it from someone.” (a) not reliable (b) not specific (c) not relevant
  15. 15.🔎 Why is this weak evidence? “I think I dreamt it.” (a) not specific (b) not reliable (c) not relevant
  16. 16.True or false: “I think I dreamt it.” — this is weak because it is not relevant to the topic. (a) False (b) True
  17. 17.True or false: the school nurse’s record of sick days is weak evidence. (a) True (b) False
  18. 18.🔎 Why is this weak evidence? “Some people say it helps somehow.” (a) not specific (b) not reliable (c) not relevant
  19. 19.🔎 Before using a number in a debate, you should… (a) round it to 100 (b) hide the source (c) check where it came from (d) make it bigger
  20. 20.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) False (b) True
  21. 21.True or false: In a debate on saving water: “My favourite colour is green.” — this is weak because it is not specific (no who, what or how many). (a) False (b) True
  22. 22.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
  23. 23.🔎 What makes evidence strong? (a) old and vague (b) funny and short (c) loud and long (d) relevant and reliable
  24. 24.True or false: a story you are not sure about is weak evidence. (a) False (b) True
  25. 25.🔎 Which is more specific? (a) lots of students (b) 30 of 40 students
  26. 26.🔎 Why is this weak evidence? In a debate on homework: “Mount Everest is very tall.” (a) not relevant (b) not specific (c) not reliable
  27. 27.True or false: a story you are not sure about is strong evidence. (a) True (b) False
  28. 28.True or false: the school library’s record of books borrowed is weak evidence. (a) False (b) True
  29. 29.🔎 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
  30. 30.🔎 Strong or weak evidence: a fact from our science textbook? (a) strong evidence (b) weak evidence
  31. 31.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
  32. 32.True or false: “My cousin said so.” is weak evidence. (a) True (b) False
  33. 33.True or false: “My cousin said so.” is strong evidence. (a) True (b) False
  34. 34.🔎 Strong or weak evidence: the school nurse’s record of sick days? (a) strong evidence (b) weak evidence
  35. 35.🔎 Strong or weak evidence: a story you are not sure about? (a) strong evidence (b) weak evidence
  36. 36.True or false: an unsigned post with no source is weak evidence. (a) True (b) False
  37. 37.True or false: “A forwarded message says so.” — this is weak because its source is not reliable. (a) True (b) False
  38. 38.True or false: “It is good for many reasons.” — this is weak because it is not relevant to the topic. (a) True (b) False
  39. 39.True or false: a fact from our science textbook is strong evidence. (a) True (b) False
  40. 40.🔎 Why is this weak evidence? “A lot of water gets wasted somewhere.” (a) not reliable (b) not relevant (c) not specific

Answer key

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

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