The Jharkhand Academic Council (JAC) has announced sweeping changes to the pattern of the Matriculation (Class 10) and Intermediate (Class 12) Board Examinations for 2026. Moving away from a decades-old system, the new framework will prioritize competency-based, application-oriented questions designed to assess a student's critical thinking and real-world problem-solving skills.
The initiative is designed to align the state board with the national educational standards of boards like CBSE and ICSE and to better prepare Jharkhand's students for competitive exams and future careers.
What's Changing?
For years, JAC board exams have primarily featured direct, syllabus-based questions. The 2026 overhaul marks a definitive break from this pattern. The question papers will now be designed to evaluate a student's core competencies and analytical abilities.
Key changes in the new exam pattern include:
- Introduction of Competency & Skill-Based Questions: The exams will feature questions that test analytical skills, sensitivity, social awareness, and logical reasoning.
- Focus on Real-Life Application: Students will encounter questions that require them to apply theoretical knowledge to practical, real-life situations.
- Interdisciplinary Approach: Questions may integrate concepts from multiple subjects, encouraging a more holistic understanding.
- New Format for Traditional Questions: Even traditional long and short-answer questions will be framed in a manner that demands conceptual clarity over verbatim reproduction from textbooks.
A clear structural framework has been laid out to implement these changes. The JAC will adopt a "30-50-20" formula for distributing marks:
30% for Objective Questions: This section will consist of Multiple Choice Questions (MCQs) worth 30 marks, testing fundamental knowledge and quick reasoning.
50% for Subjective Questions: This section, carrying 50 marks, will include short to long answer questions that are now designed to be more analytical and application-based.
20% for Practical/Internal Assessment: The remaining 20 marks are allocated for practical examinations, projects, or internal assessment, emphasizing continuous evaluation and hands-on learning.
This strategic shift is not happening in isolation. National boards like CBSE and ICSE began a similar transition two years ago, progressively increasing the weightage of competency-based questions to 50%. The Jharkhand Board's decision brings its students onto a level playing field, ensuring they develop the same critical skill sets as their peers in other boards.
The reform is also a direct implementation of the vision outlined in the National Education Policy (NEP) 2020, which strongly advocates for a move away from rote learning and towards a model that fosters cognitive capacities, creativity, and logical reasoning.
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