The Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE) has clarified that students who fail the Third Language (R3) in Class 9 will still be promoted to Class 10, but they must clear the school-based assessment in Class 10 to receive the Secondary School Examination Pass Certificate.

The clarification comes through a CBSE circular issued on July 10, outlining the implementation of the revised three-language policy for students entering Class 9 in the 2026–27 academic session.

Under the new framework, the third language will not form part of the Class 10 board examination when this batch appears for the board exams in 2027–28. However, passing the internal assessment will remain mandatory for certification.

One Re-Assessment Opportunity

CBSE stated that students who do not clear the school-based Third Language (R3) assessment in Class 10 will be provided one additional re-assessment opportunity before the declaration of board examination results.

Students promoted from Class 9 despite failing the third language will also have to successfully complete the internal assessment in Class 10 to become eligible for the final pass certificate.

Three-Language Formula Continues

The board has confirmed that students enrolling in Class 9 during the 2026–27 academic year will continue to study three languages, with at least two being Bharatiya Bhashas, subject to the exemptions and relaxations already notified.

CBSE has also clarified that the same three-language combination studied in Class 8 will continue in Class 9, ensuring continuity in language learning.

Among the recognised Bharatiya Bhashas are Hindi, Sanskrit, Tamil, Telugu, Kannada, Malayalam, Marathi, Bengali, Punjabi, Gujarati, Odia and Assamese. Non-Indian language options include English, French, German, Arabic and Spanish.

Internal Assessment Only

The board reiterated that the Third Language (R3) will be assessed only through school-based internal evaluation and will not be included in the Class 10 CBSE board examination for the current Class 9 batch appearing in 2027–28.

To facilitate implementation, the National Council of Educational Research and Training (NCERT) has uploaded learning resources for R3 languages on its official platform for schools and students.

No Change For Current Class 10 Batch

CBSE clarified that students currently studying in Class 10 during the 2026–27 academic session will continue under the existing two-language system.

This batch will neither be required to study nor appear for a third language, as the revised policy will apply only to students entering Class 9 from the 2026–27 session onward.

Implementation Framework

The board said the assessment structure notified for Class 9 (2026–27) and Class 10 (2027–28) will govern the implementation of the revised language policy for the affected batches.

The clarification aims to ensure uniform implementation of the National Education Policy (NEP)-aligned language framework while providing flexibility through school-based evaluation rather than introducing an additional board examination.