Picture Exchange Communication Systems (PECS) Implementor
Certified PECS Implementor for Effective Communication
As a Picture Exchange Communication Systems (PECS) Implementor, I specialise in aiding adults and children with neurodivergent conditions to achieve solid functional communication. I have 10 years of experience working with children and adults using PECS. I have also managed teams of educational support staff and implemented complex systems in more professional settings.
Role of a PECS® Certified Level 2 Implementer
The Picture Exchange Communications System (PECS) is an evidence-based practice supported by a large body of research worldwide. Learners achieve solid functional communication and they mostly benefit when following the PECS protocol.
Highly skilled PECS Certified Implementers take several steps when working with children or adults with autism, developmental disabilities and/or limited communication. It is essential to access and determine whether a person is suitable for PECS, for individual deployment.
The most critical element to PECS’s success is identifying a robust set of reinforcers. The professional implementer must identify items and/or activities that the learner enjoys throughout the day. In addition, it is essential to plan for communication opportunities, such as carefully monitoring the identified reinforcers so that accessibility is limited. If these items are always freely available, the learner will likely to be less motivated to request the items during your initial PECS lessons.
A common misconception people have regarding PECS is that if a child or an individual cannot match, they are not a suitable candidate for PECS.
Matching/discrimination skills are not essential to begin PECS because this particular system starts by teaching the crucial foundational communication skills of “how to communicate” and “how to be persistent with communication”. We start by using single icons during the first two phases of PECS. During the initial phases, the picture functions as a ticket that must be exchanged with a communication partner. These concepts parallel typical language development, in that young children start to engage in basic communication skills (i.e. joint attention with gestures), before developing the first words.
Similarly, we teach the art of communication via PECS to begin with and then focus on building the picture of vocabulary in phase III to teach discrimination of the icons. These teaching strategies have been effective with children who previously could not master a variety of match-to-sample lessons.
It is also a myth that using PECS causes delays or prevents speech. Research from as early as the 1960s has demonstrated that AAC (Augmentative and Alternative Communication) systems do not inhibit speech development, but rather facilitate speech development.
This is why it’s equivalent to the learner’s voice; each learner must have their own communication book. We don’t share voices. Individual users of PECS should not be required to share their communication books. The individual will be taught to transport the book to all settings beginning in phase II. After that time, the learner will always be responsible for carrying their communication book throughout the day.