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CBSE’s new school curriculum, which was unveiled on Thursday, states that a third language would be required in Class 6 beginning with the current academic year 2026-27. With every student obliged to study at least two Indian languages, the decision paves the way for the Board to include a third language as an obligatory topic in the Class 10 board exam in 2031.
The National Education Policy (NEP) 2020 advises that pupils learn three languages up to Class 10, as opposed to the current system, which only teaches two.
According to CBSE Chairman Rahul Singh, the third language or R3 is not being made mandatory for Class 9 students yet. “R3 level textbooks will be introduced in Class 6 this year. They will write their board exams in 2031, and that’s when the entire scheme will change, and the three-language formula will be entirely implemented,” he said at the launch of the CBSE’s new secondary school curriculum.
According to a source, with pupils obliged to learn at least two Indian languages as part of the three-language formula, those taking the Class 10 board test in 2031 will most likely be unable to take the exam in both English and a foreign language as the second or third language. According to the source, English will now be considered a foreign language, and the new curriculum only allows for one foreign language.
With the new curriculum, the Board is also making art education, vocational education, and physical education mandatory in classes 9 and 10. Textbooks are set to be introduced for art education and physical education. In the current academic session, Class 10 students will have school-based assessments for art and physical education. In the 2027-28 academic session, they will have vocational education as a compulsory subject with an annual or board exam, while art and physical education will continue to be assessed through school-based internals.
A Matter of Language
The changes are in line with the National Education Policy (NEP) 2020 that recommends that students learn three languages up to Class 10, unlike the current system where they study only two languages. The Board will also offer Dogri, Maithili, Konkani and Santhali as language subjects in Class 9 from the current academic session. With this, the Board will now offer all 22 scheduled languages as options. Computational thinking and artificial intelligence will also be introduced as compulsory subjects for classes 9 and 10. They will be introduced as modules with internal assessments in the current academic session, and will become a compulsory board exam subject for Class 10 in 2029. These subjects are being introduced in classes 3 to 8 in the current academic session.
From the 2026-27 academic session onwards, math and science are also being offered at two levels to Class 9 students — the advanced level will involve additional content beyond the common syllabus. Students who choose the advanced level will write an exam of 25 marks for one hour, in addition to the common final exam. Singh said that subjects at two levels can help students identify their specific aptitudes, and they can opt for the advanced level in one subject, both, or none. “For those who have cleared the advanced level, there will be a section in the marksheet with a description of the rubrics for the advanced level. Those who don’t clear it…there will be no mention of it in the marksheet. In the 2028 board exam, we’ll have these subjects at the advanced level as well,” he added. While the Board had also considered introducing Social Science at two levels in Class 9, this has not been done yet since the curriculum and assessment for it have not been worked out, the CBSE official said.
The new curriculum was launched in accordance with the NEP 2020. According to Praggya Singh, Director (Academics), CBSE, the curriculum gives a roadmap through 2031. She stated that books will be created in partnership with the NCERT for the third language. The language requirement has been lowered for schools in other nations, allowing them to offer one compulsory language native to India rather than the two Indian languages required for schools in India. The curriculum reiterates the guidelines of a CBSE circular issued last year, which said that schools must offer at least one Indian language as a medium of instruction from the preparatory stage through Class 12.
Starting with the current academic year, the Board will offer Dogri, Maithili, Konkani, and Santhali as language subjects in Class 9. The Board will now offer all 22 scheduled languages as alternatives.
Source: IE
