CBSE to Allow Basic Calculator in Class 12 Accountancy Exams

Updated on Mar 24, 2025 15:47

Starting from the academic year 2025-26, CBSE will permit the use of basic calculators in Class 12 accountancy exams to foster analytical thinking and alleviate cognitive pressure.

Kolkata: The Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE) has approved a proposal to allow the use of basic calculators in Class 12 accountancy exams starting from the 2025-26 academic year. This decision is part of broader reforms aimed at updating the syllabus, improving skill and vocational assessments, and enhancing the overall evaluation system. The move is designed to help students focus on analytical skills and reduce unnecessary stress during exams.

The CBSE's 140th governing body meeting, held in December last year, approved several important decisions, including the use of basic calculators in Class 12 accountancy exams. Although the meeting took place last year, the details were only recently made public.

According to the approved proposal, students of CBSE class 12 will be allowed to use simple, non-programmable calculators during the exam. These calculators will be limited to basic functions like addition, subtraction, multiplication, division, and percentage calculations, which are essential for financial computations. To ensure fairness, CBSE will provide clear guidelines on which calculator models are acceptable, preventing the use of advanced or programmable devices.

While CBSE already permits students with special needs in classes 10 and 12 to use calculators, this new rule extends the allowance to all class 12 accountancy students. Notably, the Council for the Indian School Certificate Examinations (CISCE) had already allowed class 12 students to use calculators starting in 2021. This change aims to reduce unnecessary stress and help students focus on developing their analytical skills.

This decision by CBSE aims to achieve several goals: reducing the mental strain on students, encouraging deeper analytical thinking, aligning with global educational standards, and supporting the National Education Policy (NEP)'s emphasis on developing higher-order thinking skills.

As part of these changes, CBSE plans to test an on-screen marking (OSM) system for subjects with fewer students and introduce a new re-evaluation process for board exams starting from the 2024-25 academic year. These steps are designed to modernize the evaluation process and make it more efficient.

To make the evaluation process faster and more efficient, CBSE's examination committee has proposed On-Screen Marking (OSM). This system involves scanning and uploading answer sheets for digital evaluation, eliminating the need to physically send answer books to evaluation centers.

The CBSE governing body has approved a pilot rollout of OSM starting from the 2024-25 academic session. It will be tested in a few subjects for Classes 10 and 12 main exams, as well as in science or mathematics supplementary exams and mathematics re-evaluations.

Additionally, the board has introduced a new re-evaluation process for students unhappy with their marks, which will be implemented in the 2025 board exams.

In other changes, CBSE has approved a proposal to allow students of CBSE class 10 to take both standard and advanced-level science and social science exams on the same day starting from the 2026-27 session. Advanced-level exams will be longer and include more questions compared to the standard level.

The board also plans to revise and streamline the curriculum for skill-based (vocational) subjects. Assessments for these subjects will be conducted by an external independent agency with expertise in vocational education and industry standards, ensuring fair and practical evaluations.

These reforms aim to modernize the examination process, reduce delays, and align with the goals of the National Education Policy (NEP).

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

Ans: As of now, the decision applies only to Class 12 Accountancy exams. There is no announcement regarding the use of calculators in other subjects.

Ans: No, the difficulty level of the CBSE exam will remain the same. The use of calculators is aimed to help students focus on analytical and conceptual understanding rather than manual calculations.