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ICSE and ISC · 2026–27

ICSE and ISC 2026⁠–⁠27: Classes 6 to 12

ICSE is the Class 10 exam; ISC is the Class 12 exam; both are run by CISCE. Here is what CISCE's own documents say about this session, class by class, and what is not yet confirmed.

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The names confuse many families, so first things first. CISCE, the Council for the Indian School Certificate Examinations, runs two board examinations. ICSE, the Indian Certificate of Secondary Education, is taken at the end of Class 10 after a two-year course in Classes 9 and 10. ISC, the Indian School Certificate, is taken at the end of Class 12. Classes 6 to 8 have no board exam: schools set the tests and choose the books for these years.

This session, two batches sit board exams in 2027: Class 10 sits ICSE 2027 and Class 12 sits ISC 2027. Students starting Class 9 now follow the regulations for ICSE 2028, which CISCE published in January 2026. CISCE's official website is cisce.org; we link only to documents there.

ICSE and ISC 2026–27 at a glance

Session
2026–27
Class 12
Sits ISC 2027

Checked on 2 October 2026 against CISCE's own documents.

What this session asks

These come from CISCE's regulations. We list nothing we could not read on cisce.org.

How board papers ask questions

ICSE and ISC papers mix short questions that check recall with longer ones that ask a student to calculate, explain a cause or argue a case. Reports say CISCE is raising the share of competency questions, the kind that put an idea to work in a new setting. We have not read the 2027 figure in a CISCE document, so we give no percentage. When you have CISCE's specimen papers for your child's exam year, look at how many questions could not be answered from memory alone.

Internal assessment is part of the result from Class 9 onwards: a fifth of the marks in Group I and II subjects, and half in Group III. Steady work through the year counts, not just the final paper.

One topic, six kinds of question levers

One Physics idea, the lever, asked at each step. The questions are our own, not CISCE's.

  1. Remember

    Name the three classes of lever.

  2. Understand

    Explain why a longer spanner makes a tight nut easier to turn.

  3. Apply

    A 2 m crowbar has its fulcrum 0.4 m from an 800 N load. What effort is needed at the far end?

  4. Analyse

    Tongs and scissors are both levers, but one has a mechanical advantage below 1. Which one, and why is that still useful?

  5. Evaluate

    To lift a heavy stone in a garden, would you pick a short or a long crowbar, and where would you place the fulcrum? Justify your choice.

  6. Create

    Design a lever from a ruler and an eraser that lifts a coin with the least effort, and explain where you placed each part.

Is ICSE harder than CBSE?

Neither board is officially harder; they are built differently. ICSE asks for six or more subjects in Classes 9 and 10, spread across three groups, with internal assessment in every subject and half the marks in Group III subjects coming from work done in school. It prescribes literature texts for English, such as a Shakespeare play. Before Class 9, schools choose their own books.

CBSE prescribes NCERT books, publishes each subject's paper design by kind of thinking, and gives Class 10 students an optional second board exam to improve their result. Which suits a child depends on how they learn, not on a ranking. Compare the two on our CBSE page and in each board's own documents.

How SelfEnabler practises this

Whatever the board, the questions climb the same ladder: remember, understand, apply, analyse, evaluate, create. A SelfEnabler check starts at the bottom and climbs only as high as your child can genuinely reach, so you see which kinds of question they are ready for, topic by topic.

Notes come from your child's own mistakes. AI Guru explains a topic again from the approved lesson material whenever your child asks, and when a topic is "not yet", a person steps in to help.

See how a lesson works
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Questions parents ask about ICSE and ISC

What is the difference between ICSE and ISC?

Both are run by CISCE. ICSE is the examination at the end of Class 10, after a two-year course in Classes 9 and 10. ISC is the examination at the end of Class 12.

What are the six subjects in ICSE?

Six or more: all three Group I subjects (English, a second language, and History, Civics and Geography), two or three from Group II, and one or two from Group III, plus SUPW and Community Service.

Is ICSE harder than CBSE?

Neither is officially harder. ICSE has more subjects in Classes 9 and 10 and more internal assessment; CBSE prescribes NCERT books and publishes detailed paper designs. The better fit depends on the child.

Has the ICSE syllabus changed for 2026–27?

Students starting Class 9 follow the ICSE 2028 regulations, published in January 2026, which list vocational subjects such as Robotics and Artificial Intelligence in Group III. Check each subject's syllabus on cisce.org.

When are the ICSE and ISC 2027 exams?

CISCE had not published the 2027 timetables when we checked on 2 October 2026. We will add them when it does.

Where is the official ICSE syllabus?

On CISCE's own website, cisce.org. Other sites that use the CISCE name are not the Council's.

See an ICSE or ISC lesson with your child

Book a free demo and try one lesson from your child's class, step by step.

Book a free demoThe six kinds of question

ICSE and ISC, class by class