Given you’re looking at our blog, the likelihood is you know at least one basic fact about the Picture Exchange Communication System® (PECS). You may know that PECS is an AAC, that there are six phases and that it was founded by Andy Bondy and Lori Frost. Or perhaps you read our last blog post and now know that PECS is an evidence-based practice suitable for a wide range of disorders, ages and needs. Given the many layers of PECS, even if you consider yourself an expert, you may not know it all – here are five things you probably don’t know about PECS!
1. The PECS teaching protocol is based on B. F Skinner’s book, Verbal Behavior…
If you’ve ever read ‘Psychology for Dummies’ or had a nosy at our About PECS page, you’re bound to have come across the name ‘B. F Skinner’ at some point – and for very good reasons. Skinner’s research resulted in some of the most important contributions to psychology in the twentieth century. All in all, he ended up writing 21 books explaining his theories on how humans learn certain behaviours and how this learning process is impacted by consequences, both positive (reinforcement) and negative (punishment). One of these books was ‘Verbal 
The PECS protocol does exactly this – whilst there is an emphasis on wider functional communication skills (as opposed to only verbal skills), the protocol looks at the relationship between a PECS user and their communication partner and how these functional communication skills, like requesting, can be positively reinforced in order to encourage a user to repeat the action in the future. An example of this is a PECS user requesting their favourite toy car to play with and then receiving the toy car from their communicative partner; the action of requesting the toy car is reinforced by receiving the toy car, resulting in a PECS user associating fun reinforcers with requests. This leads to more requests and the development of requesting as a key functional communication skill. There are nine key communication skills, more on those later.
2. … and broad spectrum Applied Behaviour Analysis (ABA)
Many people who implement PECS with their learners do not realise that they are in fact using ABA. Indeed, some people are shocked to discover this. Historically within the UK, ABA had a mixed reception. Some people may even say it is controversial – because behaviour analysis in its earliest form, used punishment alongside reinforcement. Much of this early work was completed in laboratory settings, not with human participants. In modern day ABA this is no longer the case, and ABA is becoming much more common place in its use, with many schools and parents using the techniques to help their students learn vital communication skills and gain independence.
ABA is a scientific approach to understanding behaviour. It looks at how behaviour is changed by the environment a learner is in. Implementation must take place systematically so that those teaching can gather data on how the new skills are learned. ABA can be used to increase wanted behaviours, whilst decreasing unwanted behaviours. It is also used to maintain skills that have already been acquired, help learners to grasp new skills, and generalise their current skills so they can transfer them between activities. PECS and The Pyramid Approach to Education both use functional ABA in their method.
3. Once a student has mastered the first phase of PECS, other critical communication skills should be taught
There are five expressive skills that should be taught to a student to ensure they can communicate effectively with others:
- Requesting
- Asking for help
- Asking for a break
- Indicating ‘no’ to ‘do you want ___?’
- Indicating ‘yes’ to ‘do you want ___?’
Receptive skills are used by a student to respond to the communication of others. There are four key receptive skills that a PECS user should be taught:
- Responding to ‘wait’
- Transitioning
- Following functional directions
- Following a schedule
A one-day training workshop is available for an in depth look at these skills and how to teach them effectively
4. PECS can be used by people who have visual impairments
PECS is a very visual AAC that depends on a user being able to discriminate between different symbols and their meanings. For example, someone who is less visually able may really struggle to 
The brilliant thing about PECS is its versatility – it can be adapted with ease to suit the needs of users. For those with visual impairments, this might mean making picture cards bigger so they can be read more easily. There are three studies of note about PECS and visual impairment. A 2009 study from Texas Tech University examined the effects of a modified form of PECS on the communication skills of three students with visual impairments. The study found that the use of parts of 3D objects that an individual could touch to identify what the card was may be useful in adapting the PECS protocol for individuals with visual impairments and additional disabilities. Using a 3D printer is an alternative way to make tactile symbols that can be differentiated by a visually impaired person.
5. The end goal of PECS isn’t speech
Research has demonstrated that the use of PECS increases the possibility of speech development, and in some cases, a PECS user will go on to begin communicating verbally. Whilst it is amazing when a user goes on to develop speech, it absolutely isn’t the end goal – why?
The end goal of PECS is for a user to have learnt functional communication skills vital to fostering their independence in day to day life. A PECS user may well continue to use PECS to communicate for many years to come. They may eventually transition to a speech generating device by following a prescribed method. Or a user may develop speech, and no longer need to use PECS. If a PECS user has learnt how to communicate effectively, speech is simply a by -product of the protocol and not the end goal.
By Lucy Hotchkiss
© Pyramid Educational Consultants UK Ltd, 2020