INNOVATIVE PEDAGOGY
The enduring myth that education kills creativity is based on a simplified view of how creative thinking works, argues BI Norwegian Business School lecturer Barbara Salopek . Here, she highlights how schools can address the real issue of students losing cognitive flexibility as they become adept at using knowledge in predefined ways T he idea that “school kills creativity” is one of the most repeated claims in debates about education, innovation and the future of work. It is emotionally appealing, easy to remember and often reinforced by stories of brilliant innovators who supposedly succeeded despite formal education, rather than because of it. But what if this belief is not only wrong, but actively harmful? In my work with leaders, organisations and students, as well as through my teaching at BI Norwegian Business School, I have seen something very different. Schools do not kill creativity. On the contrary, higher education plays a critical role in enabling it.
where innovative strategies are rooted in deep market and organisational insight; and in everyday problem- solving, where experience enables flexible thinking. From this perspective, higher education does not suppress creativity. It creates the cognitive foundation that makes creative thinking possible in complex environments. The problem, therefore, is not that students learn too much, but that they often learn how to use knowledge in only one way. When learning turns into rigidity What we are facing is a more subtle challenge. The issue is not a lack of creativity, but a form of cognitive rigidity that limits how knowledge is used. This phenomenon is known as “functional fixedness”. Understanding this distinction matters, because if we misdiagnose the problem we design the wrong solutions. However, if we get it right, business schools are uniquely positioned to strengthen innovation capacity rather than suppress it. As alluded to, the myth that school kills creativity often rests on a simplified view of how creative thinking works. Creativity is portrayed as spontaneous, unstructured and instinctive, while education is framed as rigid, standardised and restrictive. From
Why creativity depends on knowledge Before we go any further, it is worth pausing to clarify what we mean by creativity. As described in my book, Future-Fit Innovation , creativity is not a sudden flash of inspiration, but the ability to make new and meaningful connections between existing pieces of knowledge. Scientific creativity, artistic creativity and everyday creativity all rely on the same underlying mechanism. The brain recombines what it already knows in new ways. This is why deep knowledge is not the enemy of creativity, but rather its prerequisite. No pianist becomes a remarkable musician overnight. Years of disciplined practice, repetition and technical mastery are what lead to someone being able to interpret music in a personal and innovative way. The same applies to artists, engineers, researchers, accountants and leaders. Creative breakthroughs emerge after long periods of learning, training and immersion in a field. Without a rich and structured knowledge base, there is simply nothing to recombine. Creativity does not appear in a vacuum. It grows out of familiarity, expertise and understanding. This is true in science, where new theories build on existing ones; in business,
Business Impact • ISSUE 1 • 2026
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