How does Piaget describe learning?

• A. Through trial and error alone
• B. By passive absorption of facts
• C. By taking information, processing it, and then reacting
• D. Through imitation only

Answer: (C)

Learning, for Piaget, is an active, constructive process in which a child builds understanding by organizing and adapting information through mental schemes. The idea of taking information, processing it, and then reacting fits this view because it shows the learner engaging with new input, using existing schemas, and adjusting thinking as needed. This isn’t about passively soaking up facts or only copying others; it’s about actively accommodating new ideas and rebalancing understanding to reach a new equilibrium. The other options miss that internal construction: trial and error alone lacks the cognitive organization Piaget emphasizes; passive absorption ignores active scheming and restructuring; imitation only doesn’t account for the learner’s own thought changes and schema adjustments.