The Ten Seed Technique was developed by Dr Ravi Jayakaran for community mapping and discussions. Participants in small groups use 10 seeds (or something similar such as stones) to discuss and make estimates about a situation. Ten Seeds is a great participatory tool because it engages community members in analysing and discussing situations. People find it surprisingly easy to use the seeds to estimate proportions and come to agreement.

Ten Seeds is very flexible and can be used on a variety of topics and situations. It is useful for collecting both quantitative (numbers) and qualitative information (ideas, comments and stories). Ten Seeds works best when you are involved as an observer and facilitator during the process. This means you can ask questions, encourage discussion and observe reactions all at the same time, meaning more learning for you (and all participants) during the process.

Ten Seed is more than a data collection tool – it is an information generating learning tool.

How it works

Ten seeds (stones, shells or some suitable preferably local uniformly sized objects will do) are used to represent a particular population or part of a population. In the example below, ten plastic sheep were used to gain an understanding of the sewing skill level a group had. People are asked to place seeds/stones representing the proportion of the population being referred to, in response to a question about an issue relating to the population.

Four to six people is a good size for a Ten Seed group, which allows each person to handle the seeds or stones and stops individuals from dominating the process. However, we have also used it as a discussion starter in even smaller groups.

The group is given the seeds (only ten!) and are then asked to allocate the ten seeds or stones to the options provided. The group discusses individually and collectively, how many of the ten seeds to allocate to each option

Different objects can be used for the Ten Seed Technique. It is a good idea to collect items from local Country, do not bring items from another Country, this is against some community protocols and could be offensive. The ten (plastic) sheep have been a good point of discussion in some of the communities in West Australia.

Example of Ten Seed Technique

1. Write on paper ‘Little Bit’ and ‘Lots’ and collect 10 objects (it can be anything cotton spools, leaves, rocks etc). You could also write a sad and happy face, or other symbols to represent differing views such as a tick or a cross.

2. Ask participants the question “How much do you know about sewing?” (participants use the 10 objects to place them in the two piles depending on what they know) then ask them why they have placed it like that.

Remember, the 10 seeds/stones represent all members of the population being discussed. Participants use their knowledge, no matter how it has been gained or how limited, to inform their movement of the seeds/stones.

3. At the end of the activity, the results for each question asked can be recorded. By using dots instead of numbers, the record directly reflects the consensus result from the group.

Some people will move the seeds/stones more than once. This is OK so long as each time the seeds/stones are moved, the mover provides an explanation about why they have moved them.

Seeds can be moved back and forward until the group agrees on the allocation across the options provided. Discussions are often lively while the seeds are being allocated. These discussions are very important as they explain the results, or findings, of the Ten Seed tool.

You will find differences in the results when several groups are involved—remember they are only estimates! Differences in scores may be just differences of opinion or experience. Or they may be due to the age and gender make-up of the groups, or where they come from. The facilitator(s) can look for any major differences in the scores from different groups and discuss the explanations behind the allocations.

How to use Ten Seeds

The Ten Seeds method can be used to:

• Estimate participation numbers

• Estimate changes in participation

• Understand why people do or do not act in certain ways

• Estimate levels of achievement of particular program/project outputs/outcomes.

Changes over time can be monitored using the Ten Seed exercise by using it at intervals with the same groups. The challenge is that if different people are involved in the exercise, changes in the scores may just be due to different people rather than changes in the situation. Changes can still be assessed by asking groups about changes between the situation as it was Before (e.g. before the program, a year ago) and Now.

Remember, it’s the discussion of the situation and the change (trend) that is important – not the actual number of seeds/stones. Make sure you record the discussion as well as the numbers.

How to analyse the results

Remember, these numbers are estimates of the situation. It is easy to pay more attention to the numbers than to the discussion and reasons (qualitative information) behind the scores. The qualitative data is where the knowledge lies.

What reasons were talked about and written down? Results from 10 Seeds can sometimes be compared with other known data, for example from surveys, attendance records, census data, or previous monitoring activity.

Write down the main conclusions about what the results indicate, and the groups noted. When this activity is repeated two or more times over the life of the program/project it is easy for people to see whether or not the desired change is occurring.

Note: The Ten Seed technique is a person’s view of a broader situation usually relating to a broader population making it a personal view about a communal situation. However, in some situations it is used with very small groups or individuals and the question asked can relate to just themselves.

The full guide on the Ten Seed Technique developed by Dr Ravi Jayakaran can be found here: https://thewellresource.org.au/in-practice/general-resources-and-tools/plan/ten-seed-technique.

For more ideas on monitoring, evaluation and research practices, visit our research page.