We are pleased to announce a special plenary session on bullying and cyberbullying by Meghan McCoy from the Massachusetts Aggression Reduction Center (MARC) at Bridgewater State University. MARC’s goal is to provide K-12 educators and professional caregivers with access to professional development in the areas of “bullying prevention, cyberbullying education and prevention, and violence prevention” (2011).

In 2010, Massachusetts adopted a comprehensive state law to address school bullying and cyberbullying. It requires all schools, public and private, to provide teachers with professional development to recognize, intervene, and prevent bullying. The Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education further identified MARC as a professional development resource for schools throughout the Commonwealth.

This two-hour professional development session is designed to align with the Massachusetts anti-bullying law. Here is an overview of the special session:

"This workshop will provide a comprehensive overview of the nature, scope, and impact of bullying and cyberbullying among students. It will begin by defining bullying and differentiating this abuse behavior from conflict. You will be exposed to practical solutions and interventions for the most common bullying behaviors seen among students. Techniques for preventing and intervening in cyberbullying instances will also be introduced and explored in detail. In addition to practical solutions, you will be provided with a greater understanding of the motivations, underlying causes, and frequencies of bullying and cyberbullying. You will be introduced to the extensive data gathered by the Massachusetts Aggression Reduction Center at Bridgewater State University (BSU) from BSU students about their experiences with bullying and cyberbullying in middle school and high school" (MARC, 2010).