The Central Board of Secondary Education will conduct CBSE Class 10 English Exam 2026 on February 21, 2026. The English (Communicative) and English (Language and Literature) subjects will be held on the same date from 10.30 am to 1.30 pm.
The English Language and Literature paper comprises of 80 marks questions. The paper comprises 11 questions in three sections. All questions are compulsory. The three sections include- Reading Skills, Grammar and Creative Writing Skills and Literature Textbook.
Section A- Reading Skills comprises 20 mark questions, Section B- Grammar and Creative Writing Skills comprises 10 mark questions and Section C – Literature Textbook comprises 40 mark questions.
The English Communicative question paper consists of 12 questions, all of which are compulsory. This question paper contains four sections: Section A: Reading Skills, Section B: Writing Skills, Section C: Grammar and Section D: Literature.
Section A will carry 22 marks, Section B will carry 22 marks, Section C will carry 10 marks, and Section D will carry 26 marks.
The Board has also released the marking scheme. The marking scheme can be checked by candidates on the official website of CBSE Academic.
CBSE Class 10 English Exam 2026: How to download marking scheme
To download the marking scheme, candidates can follow the steps given below.
1. Visit the official website of CBSE Academic at cbseacademic.nic.in.
2. Click on sample paper link available on the home page.
3. A new page will open where candidates will have to click on Class 10 or Class 12 link.
4. Again a new page will open where candidates will have to click on CBSE Class 10 English paper marking scheme.
5. A new PDF file will open.
6. Check the question paper or marking scheme and download it.
7. Keep a hard copy of the same for further need.
For more related details candidates can check the official website of CBSE Academic.
