Government considering two board exams annually for class 12 CBSE students starting 2026

The union government is thinking about having a second board examination starting June 2026 for students enrolled in Class 12 programs in Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE) schools, according to the National Curriculum Framework for School Education (NCFSE).

Currently, a Class 12 student who is following the CBSE curriculum takes the board test once a year, in February or March. The Class 12 board test results are announced in May. If a student's score falls short of expectations, they can retake one subject in July during "supplementary exams." The "supplementary exams" were held on July 15 of this year.

To reduce the pressure on students, the recently adopted National Education Policy 2020 suggests switching from large-scale exams to biennial board exams.

The Ministry of Education asked that the CBSE prepare a proposal for conducting two board exams for class 12 students annually, starting in 2026, in compliance with NEP 2020.

The first round of the two-board test system is probably scheduled for February or March, while the second round is scheduled for June. In addition, rather than only being able to take one subject at a time, students in Class 12 may be able to take "improvement exams" or "supplementary exams" for any or all subjects.

This second round of board exams would take the CBSE roughly 15 days to conduct, and it would take them another month to announce the results. This implies that results will probably be released in August if the examinations are held in June.

The government has also suggested that the first board exam not be held before February, taking into account the entrance exam timetable and the workload of teachers for marking.

The union government also anticipates that some of the students will not show up for the second board exam, which will lighten the teacher's assessment load.

According to the National Curriculum Framework for School Education (NCFSE), which is based on the National Education Policy 2020, each student should be able to take the board exams twice a year, with the best score taken into account.

"In the long term, being able to take a subject board examination immediately after the 'school term' (i.e.,'semester-wise' or 'on-demand' board examinations) will be made available," said NCFSE.