Competency-based questions in CBSE exams: what they are and how to prepare
If you know the chapter but struggle when a question presents an unfamiliar situation, what should you practise? CBSE's competency-based approach makes that a useful question. Its official sample papers ask students to diagnose mistakes, explain consequences and support a reading with evidence. The matching marking schemes show the suggested value points and how marks are awarded.
What competency-based means
CBSE describes competency-based education in terms of demonstrating learning and applying knowledge and skills in real-world contexts. To prepare, learn a concept and practise using it to explain or solve something.
Questions can use unfamiliar settings while staying within the syllabus. The 2026-27 curriculum for Classes XI and XII says questions may use real-life situations requiring application, analysis, evaluation and synthesis, while the competencies assessed remain within the prescribed syllabus. The task is to recognise and use the relevant knowledge.
How the class-wise shares changed
The dates matter when reading percentages. CBSE's circular of 6 April 2023, Acad-45/2023, raised the competency-based share of theory papers for Classes IX and X from 40% in 2022-23 to 50% in 2023-24. For Classes XI and XII, it rose from 30% to 40% over the same sessions.
The circular of 3 April 2024, Acad-30/2024, retained 50% for Classes IX and X and raised Classes XI and XII to 50% for 2024-25. Both groups then had 50% competency-focused questions, 20% select-response multiple-choice questions and 30% constructed-response short and long answers.
These categories can overlap in format. Competency-focused questions can be multiple-choice, case-based, source-based integrated questions or other types. Multiple-choice questions can therefore exceed the separate 20% category. The 50% figure applies to the theory paper, rather than the syllabus or internal assessment.
What applies to the current Board papers
CBSE's notification of 30 July 2025 said the assessment scheme for Classes X and XII in 2025-26 was unchanged from 2024-25. Its notification of 21 September 2026 says the question-paper design and assessment pattern are unchanged for 2026-27. Read together with the 2024 circular, these notices support continuing the 50% competency-focused baseline for those Board classes.
The 2026-27 Secondary Curriculum Part 1, which covers Classes IX and X, separately describes approximately 50% of Board-examination questions as competency-focused. Its examples include data interpretation, situational questions and application-oriented tasks. Use this as an approximate share, rather than an exact count of numbered questions in every subject.
The newer sample-paper notices cover Classes X and XII. For Classes IX and XI, which have school examinations, the latest explicit class-group percentage table found in the sources is from 2024-25. Check current requirements with the school, since the Board-class notices apply to Classes X and XII.
Mathematics: finding the mistake is part of the answer
The 2026-27 Class X Mathematics Standard sample paper shows why counting case studies is insufficient. Section E contains three case-study questions worth four marks each, contributing 12 of the paper's 80 marks. Other questions can also assess application or analysis.
Outside that section, question 31(A) presents Jyoti's attempted trigonometric simplification. It asks students to identify an error, correct the working and find the result. This is an analysis task, though the paper does not formally label every question by competency category.
The matching marking scheme divides its three marks: one for identifying the error in step 2, one for the corrected expansion, half for the next simplification and half for the final result, 2 sec θ. Here, diagnosing the mistake and repairing the mathematics receive explicit credit.
To prepare, examine worked solutions as well as solve questions yourself. Compare each stage with the scheme. Marks depend on the steps specified for that question.
Science: connecting a mechanism to a consequence
Question 10 in the 2026-27 Class X Science sample paper has two parts. Part A describes a narrowed bile duct obstructing bile flow to the small intestine and asks how digestion would be affected. Part B asks how intestinal length relates to animals' food habits.
For the first part, the marking scheme explains bile's role in providing an alkaline environment and breaking fats into smaller globules, then connects the obstruction to impaired fat digestion. It shows a half-mark plus half-mark allocation. The other mark is for the relationship between food habits and intestinal length.
To prepare, practise explaining the mechanism and its consequence, beyond simply naming an organ. Answer both parts. This example shows how a biological concept is assessed; check each question's scheme for its division of marks.
English: explaining a choice and supporting a claim
In the Class X English Language and Literature sample paper for 2026-27, question 1(VIII) asks why the author uses rhetorical questions. The two-mark task is a good place to practise connecting a language choice to its effect on the reader.
The marking scheme's general instructions describe its value points as guidelines rather than complete answers and allow students' own correct expression. Practise explaining accurately in your own words, keeping your answer relevant.
Class XII English Core offers another kind of reading task. Question 1(I) asks for evidence from paragraph 1 supporting the passage's description of the Geminids as exceptionally active. Preparing for such a task means distinguishing the claim from the evidence that supports it.
For a separate item, question 1(V), the scheme accepts a reason showing ease of observation or accessibility, provided the passage supports it. Different answers can meet that item's requirement if the passage supports them.
Using the official practice material
Start with CBSE's 2026-27 sample-paper page for Class X or Class XII and obtain both the subject paper and its matching marking scheme. Class X Mathematics Basic and Mathematics Standard have separate papers. Class XII has its own subject-wise collection. Use the relevant pair to understand answer formats and how marks are awarded.
For further practice, CBSE's CBE Assessment page offers curriculum-aligned items in Mathematics, Science and English for Classes 6 to 10. Its Additional Practice Questions page also supplies practice papers for Classes X and XII, with marking schemes for the 2023-24 and 2022-23 collections. The checked collections are labelled 2023-24, 2022-23 and 2021-22. Check older questions against the current syllabus and use the current sample papers for evidence of paper design.
What to do in practice
A sensible routine follows from these examples: learn the prescribed concept, attempt an official question, and write the reasoning or evidence requested. Then compare the attempt with its marking scheme, correct the specific error and try another application. This suggested routine draws on CBSE's materials; it is not a prescribed timetable.
When students, parents and teachers review an answer, ask what is missing: the relevant concept, a step in the working, an explanation of the consequence or support from the passage. That makes the next practice task specific.