"Kanaf Dror" Social Democratic High School, Natur

Who We Are

The Kanaf Democratic School operated for decades in a democratic-Sudbury model and was a unique, community school that served as a meaningful home for hundreds of students over the years.

Starting last year, the school began a process of change to adapt itself to the challenges of the times and the needs of the Golan communities. Partners in this process, alongside the school, are the Ministry of Education, the Regional Council, and the Dror Educational Network, which took over the ownership of the school.

Within this process, the school is updating its modes of operation to expand the response it provides to diverse youth. The process includes a pedagogical change - improving learning processes and the academic challenge, alongside preserving the qualities of choice, self-management, and personal attention.

The high school has been growing in recent years, and in the last year in grades 9-12, it grew from 35 students in the 2024-2025 school year to 60 students in the 2025-2026 school year, and is temporarily located in the settlement of Natur.

The high school continues to grow and is in a joint planning process involving the Regional Council, the Dror Educational Houses Association, the Ministry of Education, and the communities in the Golan.

The high school leads innovative pedagogy that integrates learning connected to the Golani environment, project-based learning stemming from students' personal responsibility, and choosing a personalized learning track for each teenager.

In parallel to standard learning, the high school creates creative responses for developing the personal abilities of each student and empowering them, all this through hands-on work, creativity, and connection to the environment in which the school is located.

The school engages in staff development and annual training to develop holistic educators who engage in learning, listening, and developing students with joy.

Educational Concept

The educational rationale of the Kanaf Democratic High School combines principles of democratic education with social commitment, local Golani identity, and a holistic view of the human being. It is based on a deep belief in the ability of every person to discover their unique strengths and realize their inherent potential when acting in a supportive environment that grants them freedom of choice alongside a clear framework of responsibility and community.

The school aspires to be an authentic living space, where students experience choice, responsibility, and dialogue on a daily basis. It seeks to cultivate graduates with a sense of self-worth, the ability to make conscious choices, personal and social responsibility, an affinity for the place and the environment, and a commitment to the values of human dignity, social justice, and sustainability.

In an era of rapid changes and complex challenges, the school seeks to provide its students with the tools to cope with a changing world: mental flexibility, independent learning ability, critical and creative thinking, emotional and social intelligence, and a sense of meaning and belonging. We believe that meaningful education is not just preparation for life, but is life itself - an authentic and rich experience accompanied by observation, learning, and growth.

Core Values – The Four Pillars of "Kanaf Dror"

Golan: Community connection, to the land and to agriculture.
- Pedagogical expression – An ecology major drawing upon the geography of the Golan. Community-involved social projects as part of the curriculum, including matriculation recognition.
Social: Encounters between diverse groups and individuals, integrating a conception of justice and social change into learning processes both for school students and in their actions toward surrounding society.
- Pedagogical expression – Selecting social science tracks, critical thinking, developing teamwork in learning – all required skills by the Ministry of Education. An annual social project aimed at learning and addressing social issues.
Home: A sense of safety and visibility at school. Developing social skills and relationships at the center of school life.
- Pedagogical expression – Mentor accompaniment for every youth, ...
Democratic: Expectation of student responsibility, initiative, perseverance, and leadership. Exposure to content and encouraging questioning and criticality. Experiencing processes of self-direction and inner responsibility.
- Pedagogical expression – A variety of study tracks within the school, student parliament/assembly, selecting study topics within the various disciplines.

Educational Endeavor Expressing Our Uniqueness

Adoption of the Neti Force Memorial
Erecting fencing for the Majduliya excavation site
Research projects in collaboration with the Golan Research Institute
11th Grade Journey - for all Dror Educational Centers - "Journey to the Human Spirit" 3 days
12th Grade Journey - for all Dror Educational Centers - "Israel's and Mine" 4 days
Desert Journey
Urban Journey
Spring Fair
Weekly community assembly