Fostering creativity in formal schooling: A systematic review of explicit and implicit interventions for young learners

Creativity is widely regarded as a core competence for the 21st century. However, there remains considerable debate regarding the extent to which formal schooling supports or hinders the development of students' creativity. One contributing factor to this uncertainty is the limited understanding among educators of how to design and implement evidence-based creativity interventions. In addition, the potential of pedagogical practices and contextual factors—such as instructional methods, classroom climate, and curriculum design—to indirectly foster creativity is often underrecognized in educational research. While prior reviews and meta-analyses have explored these dimensions, few have done so in a clearly differentiated and systematic manner. The present systematic literature review addresses this gap by synthesizing current empirical evidence on how creativity is cultivated in school settings, focusing on both explicit (i.e., creativity techniques and trainings) and implicit (i.e., pedagogical approaches, educational context) interventions. A total of 101 empirical studies published between 2005 and 2025 were analyzed using qualitative synthesis and thematic coding. Findings revealed that creativity can be cultivated through a wide range of school-based interventions. Explicit approaches typically aim to enhance creative ideation, creative mindset, and the cognitive foundations of creativity through direct instruction or playful, structured activities. Implicit approaches operate more diffusely via pedagogical practices, such as alternative pedagogies, student-centered inquiry learning, creative problem solving, and blended or flipped classroom models, all situated within creativity-supportive environments (e.g., psychologically safe climates, teacher encouragement, and access to rich materials and digital technologies). The review also revealed the various types of creativity targeted (e.g., divergent thinking, convergent thinking, domain-specific creativity) and the implementation of fostering creativity in curriculum (e.g., STEM/STEAM, design, and sports). By mapping these diverse strategies and outcomes, the review provides the basis for a structured, evidence-based framework for enhancing creativity in school settings. It supports educators, curriculum designers, and policymakers in designing developmentally appropriate, context-sensitive, and pedagogically grounded learning environments that actively foster students' creative potential.