Anti-bullying law in New Jersey prompts more reporting of incidents

From The Newark Star-Ledger: New Jersey public school students endured 12,024 instances of bullying, harassment and intimidation last school year, according to a report released by the state's Department of Education. Driven by the requirements of a tough new anti-bullying law, the number of incidents reported during the 2011-12 school year increased four-fold over the previous year. Under the new law, students may report bullying anonymously, and districts are required to document and investigate every accusation. Nearly 10 percent of victims reported taunting because of their gender. In 8.4 percent of incidents, students were bullied because of their race, and in 9.4 percent of the cases, the harassment was because of a student’s mental or physical disability, the report says.