- By Sarju Saran Tiwari
- Wed, 19 Nov 2025 06:57 PM (IST)
- Source:JND
CBSE Board Exam 2026: The Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE) will conduct both Class 10 Mathematics Standard and Mathematics Basic on February 17, 2026. It will be the first exam that all the class 10 students will attempt. The exam will be conducted across various centres in a single shift between 10:30 AM and 1:30 PM. Here are all the details you should know about the exam.
CBSE Board Class 10 Exam 2026: Marking Distribution Scheme
In the Mathematics Basic Paper, Section A will have 20 questions, each carrying 1 mark. Section B will have 5 Very Short Answer Questions (VSA), each carrying 2 marks. Section C will have 6 Short Answer Questions (SA), each carrying 3 marks, and Section D will have 4 questions, each carrying 5 marks. The final section, or Section E, will have 3 case-study-based questions, each carrying 4 marks, with three sub-sections carrying 1, 1, and 2 marks, respectively.
CBSE Class 10 Mathematics Basic Paper Pattern:
Section | Type of Questions | No. of Questions | Marks per Question | Total Marks |
A | Objective/MCQs | 20 | 1 | 20 |
B | Very Short Answer (VSA) | 5 | 2 | 10 |
C | Short Answer (SA) | 6 | 3 | 18 |
D | Long Answer | 4 | 5 | 20 |
E | Case Study Based (3 with 1, 1, 2 breakdown) | 3 | 4 | 12 |
Total |
| 38 |
| 80 |
The Mathematics Standard question paper will have 38 questions and is divided into 5 sections: A, B, C, D, and E. In Section A, questions 1-18 are Multiple Choice Questions (MCQs), and questions 19 and 20 are Assertion-Reason based questions, each carrying 1 mark. In Section B, questions 21-25 will be Very Short Answer Questions (VSA), each carrying 2 marks. In Section C, questions 26-31 are short-answer (SA) type questions, carrying 3 marks each. In Section D, questions 32-35 are long-answer (LA) type questions, carrying 5 marks each. In Section E, questions 36-38 are case study-based questions, carrying 4 marks each, with sub-sections carrying 1, 1, and 2 marks, respectively.
CBSE Class 10 Mathematics Standard Paper Pattern
Section | Question Range / Type of Questions | No. of Questions | Marks per Question | Total Marks |
A | 1-18 (MCQs) & 19-20 (Assertion-Reason) | 20 | 1 | 20 |
B | 21-25 (Very Short Answer - VSA) | 5 | 2 | 10 |
C | 26-31 (Short Answer - SA) | 6 | 3 | 18 |
D | 32-35 (Long Answer - LA) | 4 | 5 | 20 |
E | 36-38 (Case Study Based) | 3 | 4 | 12 |
Total |
| 38 |
| 80 |
CBSE Board Exam 2026: Past Years Difficulty Level
The CBSE Class 10 Mathematics exam in 2024 was moderately difficult. Experts stated that the paper was balanced but somewhat challenging, although students who prepared well could easily solve it. Most of the questions were directly based on the NCERT syllabus.
The 2025 Class 10 Mathematics exam was considered moderately difficult and lengthy, but still manageable for students who prepared well. A large portion of the exam questions were based on the NCERT syllabus. This made the questions accessible for students who focused on their concepts.
Set 1 was particularly challenging, containing many difficult multiple-choice questions, while Set 2 was comparatively easier. The 3-mark and 5-mark questions were considered difficult, especially those related to trigonometry and coordinate geometry.
