India Study Solutions 
Your Subtitle text
School Examination Boards
Related Articles
¤ List of State Boards for School Examination
in India.
¤ CBSE Sample Questions Papers | NCERT Practice Papers | CBSE Mock Test Papers
¤ The CBSE - CCE Road Map (& evaluation pattern) for Students in Class IX and Class X
in India.
¤ CBSE Sample Questions Papers | NCERT Practice Papers | CBSE Mock Test Papers
¤ The CBSE - CCE Road Map (& evaluation pattern) for Students in Class IX and Class X
¤ National or Central School Education
Boards in India – CBSE, CISCE and NIOH
Boards in India – CBSE, CISCE and NIOH
¤ CBSE sample papers and NCERT questions
¤ International Certifications of School
Exams and International Schools in India
¤ What is Continuous and Comprehensive
Evaluations (CCE) under CBSE?
School Boards in India
India is a vast country with a very large percentage of its huge population being school going children. Also it is one of the largest democratic countries in the world where education is a fundamental right of every citizen. Needless to say India's education sector is emerging fast with sparking demand especially, since the Government has adopted the policy to provide education for all.
Schooling education in India is mainly regulated by School Boards at national level or Central Board of secondary Education (CBSE) as well as at state level too. The regulations of various state school boards in India vary from state to state. Central Board of secondary education is being monitored by central government and State boards have their own education board systems.
India has a number of government schools as well as private schools in the country like - Sainik Schools, Kendriya Vidyalaya Sangathan (KV), Tibetan Schools, Railway Schools, the Navodaya Vidyalayas, Missionary Schools, Madrassa or Islamic Religious Schools and many more. Taking only Navodaya Vidyalayas (Navodaya Schools) and Kendriya Vidyalayas (KVs) together, there are about 1250 schools in India.
Each school in India is affiliated to one of various Indian School Boards. Every Board has its own education philosophy and curricula. Therefore, before giving admission it is necessary to evaluate each board carefully to decide which one is best suited to your child. It will be judicious to spend some time on school board selection, because all schools affiliated to a given board whether it is a State Board or Central Board (like CBSE) or Council (CISCE), must follow the guidelines and curriculum of that board. And since different school boards follow different methodologies, it influences a child's learning and mental growth differently.
State Boards or State School Examination Boards (SSE) in India
In India you find that most of the old schools are affiliated to either State Board, simply because this was the only option available a generation or two ago when many of these institutions were started. There are about 32 State Boards for school education in India at present. Their teaching pattern is mostly textbook-based and emphasizes discipline and hard work. The work load given to a student is comparatively lesser than that of CBSE (Central Board of Secondary Education) and ICSE (Indian Certificate of Secondary Education) and students studying in a state board affiliated school have ample time to partake in extra-curricular activities. States have the freedom to make the learning of their state language compulsory. Many states have in the recent past made their state language compulsory for schools affiliated to the respective state board. In most of the state-run schools, of course, there is no debate and state language is the medium of instruction. Evaluation of answer books are done on an expected language and steps involved in the answers. But it also means hard-working students with excellent memory can score excellent marks and in fact they do so in class 10 and 12 public examinations. Many good schools affiliated to some state board still produce IIT (the best engineering institutes in India), other engineering institutes’ and medical entrance rankers in good numbers.
National Boards of School Education in India
CBSE (Central Board of Secondary Education)
The Central Board of Secondary Education or CBSE is the central body of Government of India to conduct the secondary and senior-secondary school examinations in India. At present there are more than 9000 schools affiliated to CBSE spread in 19 countries all over the world with approximately 12 million students studying in those schools. CBSE also prepare syllabus for the schools affiliated to it. The exam it conducts for class 10 is called All India Secondary School Examination (AISSE) and the one for class 12 is called All India Senior School Certificate Examination (AISSCE). Grading system was introduced recently since 2010 through Continuous and Comprehensive Evaluations (CCE), a system of school-based evaluation of students, covering all aspects of pupils' development.
CISCE (Council for The Indian School Certificate Examinations)
CISCE (Council for The Indian School Certificate Examinations) was established after independence to fill the need for an All India Exam to replace the Cambridge School Certificate Examination, which was held outside the UK. The class 10 examination held by it is called Indian Certificate of Secondary Education (ICSE), while the class 12 examination is called Indian School Certificate (ISC) Examination. CISCE also conducts The Certificate of Vocational Education (CVE) Examination, which is intended to prepare students for particular occupations. Only English medium schools are allowed.
The Central Board of Secondary Education or CBSE is the central body of Government of India to conduct the secondary and senior-secondary school examinations in India. At present there are more than 9000 schools affiliated to CBSE spread in 19 countries all over the world with approximately 12 million students studying in those schools. CBSE also prepare syllabus for the schools affiliated to it. The exam it conducts for class 10 is called All India Secondary School Examination (AISSE) and the one for class 12 is called All India Senior School Certificate Examination (AISSCE). Grading system was introduced recently since 2010 through Continuous and Comprehensive Evaluations (CCE), a system of school-based evaluation of students, covering all aspects of pupils' development.
CISCE (Council for The Indian School Certificate Examinations)
CISCE (Council for The Indian School Certificate Examinations) was established after independence to fill the need for an All India Exam to replace the Cambridge School Certificate Examination, which was held outside the UK. The class 10 examination held by it is called Indian Certificate of Secondary Education (ICSE), while the class 12 examination is called Indian School Certificate (ISC) Examination. CISCE also conducts The Certificate of Vocational Education (CVE) Examination, which is intended to prepare students for particular occupations. Only English medium schools are allowed.
National Institute of Open Schooling (NIOS)
The National Institute of Open Schooling (NIOS) formerly known as National Open School (NOS) was established in November,1989 as an autonomous organisation in pursuance of National Policy on Education 1986 by the Ministry of Human Resource Development(MHRD), Government of India. NIOS is providing a number of Vocational, Life Enrichment and community oriented courses besides General and Academic Courses at Secondary and Senior Secondary level. It also offers Elementary level Courses through its Open Basic Education Programmes (OBE).
International Certifications in India
The boards that administer these examinations are based in Europe. So, even a not-for-profit operational cost is high from an Indian perspective. There are many schools in India that are affiliated to International Baccalaureate (IB) also known as International Baccalaureate Organization (IBO). IB was set up in the 1968 and is based in Geneva. It offers academic programs to more than 900,000 IB students in about 2257 schools spread over 140 countries worldwide. In India about 46 schools have enrolled as IB schools as of this writing, most of them opting for the DP (Diploma Programme). Another is University of Cambridge International Examinations (CIE). Of the different exams offered by Cambridge, two are offered by some Indian schools. The class 10 exam is The International General Certificate of Secondary Education (IGCSE) and the class 12 one is Advanced International Certificate of Education (AICE). Both are recognized internationally and in major Indian institutes like IIT, AIIMS and other engineering and medical institutes.
Keywords: School, School Board, CBSE, CISCE, Indian school, School education, School examination, Boards, Indian education