The Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE) will roll out a two-tier system for science and social science, offering standard and advanced levels, starting with Class 9 in the 2026-27 academic year and Class 10 in 2027-28. CBSE Chairman Rahul Singh announced on Tuesday, “From 2026, Class 9 students will study science and social science at both standard and advanced levels. In Class 10, they’ll continue with both levels and take board exams in 2028.”
This move follows approval from CBSE’s governing body, based on a proposal from its curriculum committee. Singh explained that the 2028 Class 10 board exams might feature either a single paper with additional advanced-level questions or separate papers for each level, depending on the subject.
The initiative aligns with the National Education Policy 2020, which suggested offering subjects at two difficulty levels, starting with mathematics, allowing students to mix standard and higher-level courses. CBSE has already implemented this for mathematics in Class 10 since 2019-20, where standard and basic options share the same syllabus but differ in exam question complexity.
To support this change, CBSE has asked the National Council of Educational Research and Training (NCERT) to revise Class 9 and 10 textbooks for science and social science, adding sections for advanced content. “We expect NCERT to deliver these updated textbooks for Class 9 by next year,” Singh said. NCERT has been updating its materials in phases per the National Curriculum Framework, releasing new books for Classes 1 and 2 in 2023, Classes 3 and 6 in 2024, and planning releases for Classes 4, 5, 7, and 8 in 2025-26, with Class 9 targeted for 2026-27.
