The Washer Visual Acuity Screening Technique (WVAST) assesses the vision of very young children and severely mentally challenged and/or low-functioning populations. It provides for near and far vision screening and can be administered by trained volunteers. The WVAST does not require many perceptual, motor, or verbal skills. A conditioning process is outlined for familiarizing test subjects with the symbols, matching skills, and eye occlusion used in the screening. With conditioning and reinforcement, the WVAST has successfully screened children as young as eighteen months of age.

WVAST Screening Materials

• 3 matching sets of 3 large symbol cards (apple, house, and umbrella)
• 1 set of 12 stimulus symbol cards
• 1 small piece of black poster board
• 1 wooden stand for symbol cards
• 1 nearpoint panel with stimulus wheel and distance line
• 2 occluders
• 1 10–ft. cord with 5–ft. indicator bead