John F. Kennedy School Berlin

The school has a School Counseling program across Elementary, Middle, and High School. The Elementary School Counselor provides counseling services for Entrance Class through Grade 6 and delivers a three-level guidance curriculum addressing academic and social-emotional counseling, conflict management, self-confidence, decision-making, stress management, crisis counseling, and transitions; the ES Counselor collaborates with the Special Needs Teacher to support accommodations. The Middle School Counselor serves grades 7-9, focusing on study skills and organization, communication and conflict management, goal setting, and stress management, and provides personal-social/emotional, academic, and career support; New Student Orientation is coordinated and Student Ambassadors are trained with support from colleagues. The High School Counselor provides counseling for grades 10-12, oversees course selection and scheduling for the High School Diploma Program and Abitur, coordinates college planning and applications and standardized testing, and serves as the NCAA/NAIA contact for prospective student-athletes, while addressing personal and career issues. The ES and MS counselors also work with families as part of the broader student support network.

The school is dedicated to creating a supportive learning environment for all students, including those with special learning needs. It provides accommodations and resources in keeping with the dual-language program and staff capacity. JFKS does not offer a full special education program, and in some cases the special needs of a student are met in a monolingual or smaller classroom setting; however, students with special needs do attend JFKS and are supported with a variety of strategies and resources. The school provides regular professional development for teachers in the areas of special learning needs, differentiation of instruction, and up-to-date support methods, and has secured additional funding to broaden its program. The Elementary School can help students with dyslexia, dyscalculia, ADD/ADHD, processing disorders, and milder forms of Asperger Syndrome/Autism Spectrum Disorder; the school can serve hearing- and sight-impaired or physically- or mentally-handicapped students if outside support is provided; the Student Support Team includes special education teachers, counselors, and school social workers; formal accommodation plans require a medical diagnosis and are decided by the class conference.

The school follows a bilingual language education concept in German and English in the Elementary School, with the goal of providing all students with competence-based, individualized, and continuous support in both languages. Ongoing language observation and diagnostics identify support needs; language-sensitive subject teaching actively promotes academic and everyday language; team teaching supports learning in heterogeneous groups; support for all language learners is provided, with close cooperation with parents. Language development from Entrance Class through Grade 6 combines immersive early-stage bilingual exposure with language support structures, including two Language teachers from Grade 3 onward, differentiated language groups, and a German Intensive Program for new students without German skills.

The school provides School Counseling across Elementary, Middle, and High School. The Elementary School Counselor addresses academic and social-emotional counseling, conflict management, improving self-confidence, decision-making, stress management, crisis counseling, and transitions, and collaborates with the Special Needs Teacher to support accommodations. The Middle School Counselor addresses study skills, organization, communication, conflict management, decision-making, goal setting, and stress management, and supports students individually on personal-social/emotional, academic, and career issues, coordinating New Student Orientation and Student Ambassadors. The High School Counselor oversees course selection and scheduling for the Diploma and Abitur, college planning and applications, standardized testing, and provides guidance on personal statements, career planning, and stress management.

The school has a Child Protection Plan (Kinderschutzkonzept) updated in September 2023. It designates a Child Protection Officer and external expert advise, provides an Intervention Plan, and establishes safeguarding procedures for suspected child welfare concerns; safeguarding is a collective responsibility involving all staff and the school community. Every adult has a role in upholding the plan and supervising its implementation, with ongoing monitoring and annual staff training on child protection and code-of-conduct requirements. Recruitment includes explicit reference to the child-protection policy and, for new employees, current extended police clearance certificates; a Binding Code of Conduct requires staff to commit to safeguarding guidelines, and there are explicit guidelines for social media and information handling. The plan is reviewed and revised annually with opportunities for parent training and involvement.