Communication & AAC Glossary

Recognize the full communication system

Multimodal communication uses more than one form, such as speech, sign, gesture, facial expression, body movement, writing, or AAC. A person may choose a different form depending on partner, fatigue, noise, motor access, message, and urgency.

Aided AAC uses an external tool, from paper and objects to a speech-generating device. Unaided AAC uses the body without an external communication tool, such as manual signs or gestures.

Nonspeaking describes a person who does not use speech or uses very little speech. It says nothing by itself about understanding, intelligence, literacy, decision-making, or the complexity of the person's ideas.

The ASHA AAC portal describes aided and unaided forms and says users should always have access to their communication tools or devices.

Separate sending, understanding, and usefulness

Expressive language concerns sending messages. Receptive language concerns understanding language. Performance depends on the message, context, sensory access, familiarity, response demand, culture, and assessment method.

Functional communication is communication that effectively serves a meaningful purpose for the person, such as requesting, refusing, commenting, asking, protesting, sharing, joking, or seeking help. “Functional” should never shrink communication to requesting preferred items.

Use an accessible response rather than requiring eye contact, speech, a particular motor movement, or a prompted form when another clear message is available. Honor recognizable stop, no, pain, break, and help messages promptly.

Plan core and personal vocabulary

Core vocabulary includes high-frequency words useful across many contexts, such as more, stop, go, help, and different. Fringe vocabulary includes specific people, places, interests, foods, activities, identities, and topics.

A balanced system needs both. Core words support flexible combinations, while fringe words let the person talk about the details that make life theirs. Include urgent health and safety language, names, favorite topics, community places, school content, slang, and culturally relevant words.

Review vocabulary with the user. A system designed only by adults can omit the messages the person most wants to send.

Understand common aided systems and teaching approaches

A communication board displays symbols, letters, or words that a person can access directly or through an access method. It may be a primary system, backup, or context-specific tool.

Picture Exchange Communication System, or PECS, is a specific trademarked instructional protocol involving exchange of a symbol under its defined phases and training. It is one AAC-related approach, rather than a name for every picture board.

Aided language modeling means a communication partner uses the person's aided system while speaking or interacting, without demanding immediate imitation. Modeling can show where vocabulary is and how messages can be combined.

System selection, symbol meaning, motor access, positioning, visual access, language, partner training, and feature matching belong within qualified professional scope. Keep a tested backup for charging, repair, transport, water, sunlight, and other real settings.

Carry communication across settings

Create a short access profile with the user's preferred systems, positioning, motor method, vocabulary organization, wait time, partner response, charging, backup, privacy, and emergency messages. Share it through the authorized route with home, school, clinic, community, and medical partners who need it.

Test the plan where communication will happen. A board usable at a table may be hard to reach in a vehicle or playground. A device voice may be hard to hear in a crowded room. A backup limited to requests can remove access to refusal, pain, questions, social connection, and repair.

Partners should know how to respond when a message is unclear. Confirm, offer time, check access, and invite repair without guessing repeatedly or taking control of the person's output.

Protect authorship and access

The DOJ effective-communication page explains auxiliary aids and services for covered entities under the ADA, subject to the applicable rules and defenses. Access planning should begin before an appointment, form, class, or crisis.

ASHA's Facilitated Communication position statement identifies FC as a discredited technique and says information obtained through it should not be assumed to be the communication of the person. A partner may stabilize materials, manage positioning, wait, model, or support access without authoring a response.

The current BACB Ethics Code addresses understandable communication, client involvement, consent and assent when applicable, cultural responsiveness, and assessment for covered individuals. Behavior analysts should collaborate with speech-language and other qualified professionals when communication needs exceed their competence.

Measure partner performance too

Fictional eleven-year-old Priya uses a tablet, signs, and speech. Across ten eligible classroom questions with the tablet positioned and charged, Priya answers through any reliable mode in seven. Partners wait the agreed eight seconds in six of ten and respond accurately to six of seven messages.

These measures separate access, person communication, and partner response. Calling the outcome “70% communication” would hide the partner denominator and the three questions where a response did not occur.

Useful review fields include system availability, backup availability, vocabulary access, wait time, prompt, message form, partner recognition, response time, repair, user effort, and the person's satisfaction.

Find ABA care near you and ask how a provider protects AAC access, recognizes multimodal messages, collaborates with speech-language professionals, and trains communication partners.