The VPA™: Assessment & Clinical Reasoning — participation guide

• Why 15 skills across 5 domains
• When to reach for a standardized tool

• 15 skills across 5 domains; the domain says what is measured, the level says how hard the item is. The output is a profile, not a global score.
• Fast Screener = triage yes/no. Mini VPA™ = which domains need full assessment. Full VPA™ = the profile that drives the plan of care.
• Age-band content variants exist to protect engagement, which protects measurement. Never hand an adolescent a primary-grade stimulus.
• Interactive and printed administration are item-equivalent, but never mix modes inside one skill, and always record the mode used.
• Observation data (head movement, refixations, latency, discomfort) is part of the finding, not optional color.

A student is described by two teachers as losing stamina in the second half of any reading block. He flags on the Mini VPA™ in Domain 2 only, with all other domains at criterion. What is your next step, and what would you have done differently if Domain 1 had also flagged?

In one sentence each, state the job of the Fast Screener, the Mini VPA™, and the Full VPA™. If any two sentences sound alike, you have not yet separated triage from routing from assessment.

Sketch the 5 × 15 grid, domains down, skills across, from memory, then check it against the VPA™ scope page. The gaps you find are the domains you are least likely to assess in practice.