Split infinitive
how do I change it?
See example:
Ultimately, I will be able to target specific goals that students need in order to properly prepare them for state testing.
Nina Walker
New member
1 answer 
Today, most grammarians recognize that the old prohibition against split infinitives is nothing more than a superstition. Garner's Modern American Usage tells us (as did Fowler's Modern English Usage two generations ago) that split infinitives are fully accepted where they feel natural. And yet, teachers and textbooks continue to preach against the split.
Still, fixing the so-called problem often results i awkward or ambiguous sentences. The best advise to molify those who find fault with the split infinitive: "if a split is easily fixed by putting the adverb at the end of the phrase and the meaning remains the same,then avoiding the split is the best course" (Garner's Modern American Usage).
In your sentence, "to properly prepare" place the adverb "properly" between "to" and "prepare" -- thus splitting the infinitive. If "to prepare properly" conveys the same meaning that you intended, you should make the revision.
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edited Sep 11 '12 at 21:06
Jeff Pribyl
Grammarly Fellow
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Split infinites, then, are something like ending prepositions: do what feels natural and conveys the best meaning. Or, as Winston Churchill famously said, "Ending a sentence with a preposition is something at with which I would not put!" Amen, Mr. C., Amen.
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