[We created and designed this card deck with an accompanying guidebook for the Library Collective's The Connection conference presented in March 2021.] The purpose of the “Oracle of the Delphi Study” is to explore broad concepts related to the “Framework for Information Literacy for Higher Education” in different ways to facilitate a deeper understanding of the core ideas of librarianship. We intend for this deck to be flexible in its usage by encouraging critical thinking about concepts related to the information ecosystem, the creative exploration of the librarian’s role as an information professional, the development of their research and scholarship areas, and the practical application of these concepts in library instruction. This deck, accompanying guidebook, and slideshow are licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.

1. “Oracle of the Delphi
Study” Deck
K. Shepard & M. Kernan

2. What’s an Oracle Deck?
Oracle decks are tools for creativity, guidance, clarity, and fresh perspectives.
Traditionally, the cards have images and words and are accompanied by a
guidebook that provides suggested interpretations and keywords for reflection.
The user can choose to use the guidebook and the prompts included, or simply
work intuitively with the deck to meditate on a single card or use multiple cards to
consider connections between concepts.

3. “Oracle of the Delphi Study” Deck
The deck is organized by each of the six core concepts of the “Framework for Information
Literacy for Higher Education”;¹ there is a card for each, and cards for related concepts.
It is our hope that this deck can be used as a tool for critical self-reflection to help us as
librarians stay engaged with professional ethics, scholarship, and instruction in a way that is
creative, curious, and mindful. It is through this kind of conscious engagement that we are
able to help the next generation of researchers develop the skills necessary to become
thoughtful, discerning, and ethical information consumers and contributors.
1. http://www.ala.org/acrl/standards/ilframework

4. Assembling the Deck

5. Making Your Own Deck
1. Print off the PDFs and the Guidebook
2. Cut out the cards
3. Assemble them into a deck and shuffle them
Note: If you intend to use the deck in instruction, you can choose to reinforce it with
cardstock.

6. Using the Deck

7. How to Use the Cards & Guidebook
Shuffle the deck several times and then choose a card/cards at random. Think about how the
concepts represented on the cards are interconnected.
Note: If you pull a card you don’t connect with, choose a new one! There are no rules.
For inspiration:
■ Find the corresponding prompts in the guidebook and consider the questions
■ Think about which frame/frames best relate to the concept
■ Pull an additional card for clarity or a different perspective
You can expand your thoughts further by writing in a journal or discussing with a colleague. Or,
if you are using it in instruction, by posing the prompts to the students and having them either
discuss or journal their own ideas.

8. Spreads

9. How to Use The Cards in Instruction
Preselect cards related to the session topics to inspire discussion.
Example:
During an instruction session about choosing appropriate sources for a research project,
discuss each card separately then discuss how each informs the others.
Consult the guidebook for questions to help facilitate the discussion.

10. How to Use The Cards with Colleagues
■ Shuffle the deck and draw one or more cards
■ Spend a few minutes individually considering the concepts and how they are related
■ Come back together as a group to discuss your thoughts and how these ideas can
impact your organization and professional practice
■ The guidebook can provide additional points of conversation

11. How to Use The Cards for Yourself
■ Shuffle the cards and draw as many as you’d like at random
■ Reflect on the concepts and how they relate to your own work and experiences
■ Consider how these cards affect your own assumptions and beliefs
■ You can expand your thoughts further by writing in a journal or discussing with a
colleague

12. Resources
■ "Framework for Information Literacy for Higher Education", American Library
Association, February 9, 2015. http://www.ala.org/acrl/standards/ilframework
(Accessed October 21, 2020) Document ID: b910a6c4-6c8a-0d44-7dbc-
a5dcbd509e3f

13. To View & Save the Guidebook & Cards
■ Visit our Google Drive folder:
○ Google Drive Folder with all Materials
○ The Oracle of the Delphi Study Deck (PDF)
○ The Oracle of the Delphi Study Deck Guidebook
○ The Oracle of the Delphi Study Deck Remix (Randomized Slideshow By
Emily Krug)
This deck, accompanying guidebook, and slideshow are licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-
NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.

14. Contact Us
Katie Shepard
Web Services Librarian, Mercer University
shepard_ke@mercer.edu
Molly Kernan
Catalog & Government Information
Librarian, Mercer University
kernan_mr@mercer.edu