PECS stands for Picture Exchange Communication System. It is an augmentative and alternative communication system developed in 1985 by Andy Bondy, PhD, and Lori Frost, MS, CCC-SLP at the Delaware Autism Program. PECS is designed to help individuals with little or no speech communicate using pictures, symbols, words, or photographs.
The primary goal of PECS is to teach functional communication, and it has been successfully implemented with individuals of all ages and various cognitive, physical, and communication challenges. The system consists of six phases, starting with teaching an individual to exchange a single picture of a desired item or action with a "communicative partner" who immediately honors the exchange as a request. The system then progresses to teaching discrimination of pictures and how to put them together in sentences, use modifiers, answer questions, and comment in more advanced phases.
PECS has been shown to be an effective and evidence-based practice for the development of functional communication skills. While it is not designed to teach speech directly, some learners using PECS have also been observed to develop speech. The system is relatively inexpensive and low-tech, making it accessible for use in various settings, including home, school, and the community.
