Eija Aalto

Dr. Aalto’s research focuses on phonological development and auditory processing across languages with particular attention to how children and adults perceive and produce speech in multilingual contexts. Dr. Aalto is especially interested in the role of auditory skills in shaping phonological acquisition and in understanding the factors that influence accentedness and coarticulatory patterns in second language (L2) speech. A growing area of her work examines ultrasound imaging and ultrasound biofeedback as tools for studying articulatory behavior and enhancing learners’ awareness of tongue movements during speech. Through collaborations, she investigates how articulatory visualizations can support both research on L2 phonological learning and evidence-based instructional approaches. Dr. Aalto’s teaching interests span speech sound disorders, phonetic transcription, clinical methods in speech language pathology (SLP), communication disorders and professional practice within speech-language pathology and SLPA education. She aims to integrate research-informed pedagogy with practical skill development, emphasizing clear clinical reasoning and culturally responsive assessment. Her broader clinical background—from school-based and telepractice services to multilingual assessment and voice work—enriches her teaching and supervision. She has supervised graduate research in auditory word recognition and support students in developing strong analytical, reflective and professional competencies as they prepare for careers in communication sciences. | Phonological development, auditory word recognition, multilingualism, L2, family centered SLP, ultrasound biofeedback

Eija Aalto is Assistant Professor at MacEwan University. Their stated interests include Dr. Aalto’s research focuses on phonological development and auditory processing across languages with particular attention to how children and adults perceive and produce speech in multilingual contexts. Dr. Aalto is especially interested in the role of auditory skills in shaping phonological acquisition and in understanding the factors that influence accentedness and coarticulatory patterns in second language (L2) speech. A growing area of her work examines ultrasound imaging and ultrasound biofeedback as tools for studying articulatory behavior and enhancing learners’ awareness of tongue movements during speech. Through collaborations, she investigates how articulatory visualizations can . This summary considered all 2 collected sources.