New CBSE guidelines: What students must know for class 10, 12 exams

The Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE) has issued fresh guidelines for students appearing in Class 10 and Class 12 board examinations. With the introduction of the biannual exam format, both students and schools are expected to follow clear rules around eligibility, attendance, assessments, and subject choices.

Two-year programme structure

Class 10 and Class 12 have been defined as two-year courses. This means Classes 9 and 10 together form the Class 10 programme, while Classes 11 and 12 together form the Class 12 programme. To sit the board exams, students must study every subject throughout the two years.

Minimum attendance requirement

Attendance has been made a critical factor. A minimum of 75 percent attendance is compulsory for all students.

Internal assessment rules

Internal assessment is now an essential part of the evaluation under the National Education Policy (NEP) 2020. It is carried out continuously across the two years.

If a student fails to attend school, the internal assessment cannot be completed and their result cannot be declared. In such cases, even regular students will be marked under the ‘Essential Repeat’ category.

Additional subject options

Students in Class 10 may opt for up to two additional subjects along with the five compulsory ones. For Class 12, only one additional subject is permitted. These subjects must also be studied for the entire two-year duration.

Approval of subjects by schools

Schools affiliated with CBSE are not allowed to offer any subject without the Board’s prior approval. If a school does not have qualified teachers, proper laboratories, or other necessary resources, students cannot choose that subject as either a main subject or an additional one.

Rules for compartment and repeat candidates

Students who were earlier placed in the ‘Compartment’ or ‘Essential Repeat’ categories, and who had taken additional subjects, are allowed to reappear in these subjects as private candidates under their respective categories.

Restrictions for private candidates

Students who do not fulfil the stated conditions will not be considered eligible to take additional subjects in CBSE Board examinations as private candidates