Finally, an infographic that incorporates cats. A study by Onlinecollege.org found that the more students text, the more their grammar may be affected. But some of the results are dubious.

The good news is that 86% of middle-schoolers believe that good writing skills are important in life, and only 11% think that texting negatively impacts their writing.

But the survey sponsors seem concerned with the 50% who say that they don't use proper grammar or punctuation when writing texts or IMs. Also, the more teens receive "techspeak," the more they use it.

So what? I'm not sure we can reasonably conclude, as the sponsors have, that texting hurts grammar.

Discussion Starters:

• Review the full infographic. Do you draw the same conclusions as the study sponsors do?
• Look at the graphics representing 50, 11, and 86%. What issues do you notice? 
• How, if at all, do you think texting and IM have affected your use of proper grammar and punctuation?