Boards for school education in India

 Parentree-editors 2008-09-18 20:21:56

India has a large number of boards for schools, and sometimes this can be confusing. Here is a short guide on what these different boards are.

Please give us your feedback in the comments.

ICSE

  • ICSE - Indian Certificate of Secondary Education.
  • The syllabus is set by the Council for the Indian School Certificate Examinations.
  • CISCE Website - http://www.cisce.org.
  • The examination is conducted once a year up to class X. For classes, XI and XII these schools follow ISC.
  • A lot of schools throughout the country now adhere to the ICSE syllabus. After completing class X of ICSE, children can join any board - local or international.

ISC

  • ISC - Indian School Certificate
  • This board is followed for classes XI and XII.
  • The syllabus is set by the Council for the Indian School Certificate Examinations.
  • CISCE Website - http://www.cisce.org
  • The examination is conducted after a two-year course of studies beyond the Indian Certificate of Secondary Education examination (Class X) or its equivalent.
  • It is recognised by all Indian colleges and universities.

CBSE

  • CBSE - Central Board for Secondary Education.
  • Schools following this curriculum have exams at the end of Class X and XII.
  • This board was formed keeping in mind the children of parents who have transferable jobs.
  • CBSE Website - http://www.cbse.nic.in.
  • It is recognised by all Indian Colleges and Universities.

IGCSE

  • IGCSE (International General Certificate of Secondary Education) is a curriculum spread over classes IX and X.
  • At the end of class X there is an evaluation, just like class X exams conducted by CBSE and ICSE.
  • These exams are conducted by University of Cambridge International Examinations (CIE).
  • After completing IGCSE (class X) children are eligible to join any of the boards for classes XI & XII. It is recognised by all local as well as international schools.
  • CIE IGCSE Website -  http://www.cie.org.uk/qualifications/academic/middlesec/igcse/overview

Cambridge O-level

  • O-levels provide a curriculum spread over classes IX and X.
  • At the end of class X there is an evaluation, just like class X exams conducted by CBSE and ICSE.
  • These are conducted by University of Cambridge International Examinations (CIE).
  • After completing O-levels (class X) children are eligible to join any of the boards for classes XI & XII. It is recognised by all local as well as international schools.
  • CIE O-level Website - http://www.cie.org.uk/qualifications/academic/middlesec/olevel/overview

Cambridge A-level

  • A-levels provide a curriculum for a two year course of study - classes XI and XII.
  • At the end of the course there is an evaluation, just like class XII exams conducted by CBSE and ICSE.
  • These exams are conducted by University of Cambridge International Examinations (CIE).
  • These are recognized by all Indian colleges and universities.
  • CIE A-level Website - http://www.cie.org.uk/qualifications/academic/middlesec/olevel/overview

IB

  • IB (International Baccalaureate) offers high quality programmes for children from ages 3 to 19.
  • They offer 3 programmes Primary Years Programme (age 3-12), Middle Years Programme (age 11-16) and Diploma Programme (age 16-19). There are no exams till the Middle Years Programme.
  • The IB Diploma Programme is recognised by universities all over the world. The IB programme was founded by the International Baccalaureate Organisation (IBO) based in Geneva, Switzerland.
  • This diploma is recognized by all Indian colleges and universities
  • IBO Website - http://www.ibo.org

Matriculation

  • Matriculation Board is typically found in in Tamil Nadu and Pondicherry schools.
  • The syllabus is prepared by the Members of the Board of Matriculation Schools in Tamil Nadu and Pondicherry
  • These schools follow the Matriculation curriculum from LKG to Class X. After Class X (for XI and XII grades) they follow Tamil Nadu State board syllabus.
  • Matriculation website - http://dge.tn.gov.in/matricsyllabus

State boards

  • State Board - Virtually, every state in India has its own board.
  • The examination is conducted by the State Education department at the end of Class X and XII.
  • These are usually recognised by all Indian Colleges and Universities.

Other non-Indian boards

In addition to the boards listed above, most Indian colleges and universities recognize a number of other boards offered in other countries.

The Association of Indian Universities sets the guidelines for which non-Indian boards are accepted.

The website listed the following boards as being equivalent to an Indian +2 qualification (when accessed on September 18 2008)

  • 12 years Baccalaureate Certificate of Afghanistan, France, Iraq and Tunisia.
  • 12 years General Secondary Education Certificate of the Ministry of Education – Bahrain, Egypt, Iran, Jordan, Kuwait, Oman, Saudi Arabia, United Arab Emirates and other Gulf countries.
  • GCE/IGCSE/GCSE examinations of the approved British Examining Bodies in UK, Singapore, Hong Kong, and Mauritius with passes in 5 subjects at ‘Ordinary Level’ and 2 subjects at ‘Advanced Level’. For admission to professional courses – medical/engineering Advanced level passes in Physics, Chemistry, Biology/ Mathematics and English are essential besides 5(Five) passes at GCE 'Ordinary Level'.
  • High School Diploma from accredited School of USA.
  • Intermediate/Senior Secondary/Higher Secondary of the approved Boards in Pakistan, Bangladesh and Nepal.
  • 12 years Secondary stage qualification of National Examination Board/Council of the Ministry of Education – Kenya,Nigeria, Ethiopia, Sudan, Uganda and Tanzania.
  • 12-years Secondary Stage Examination conducted by various Provinces in Australia and Canada
  • GCE ‘Ordinary and Advanced’ level examination of the Department of Examination, Government of Sri Lanka
  • 12-years STPM examination of Malaysia
  • 12-years Secondary Stage qualification of Indonesia, Japan, Korea, Socialist Republic of Vietnam and Yemen Arab Republic,.
  • Abitur of Germany
  • 12-year High School Diploma awarded by the accredited American School/International Schools in other countries following American pattern of education.

Please check for any updates at the AIU website.

Comments

 Former member 2010-07-18 00:53:58

 

HI Could u also provide info on how difficult or easy each syllabus (esp CBSE, ICSE & IGSCE)is in comparison to others, assuming that a child needs to make a change from one syllabus to other due to a change of school or city of residence(in India). Are the curriculum of all syllabus at par with each other in terms of content?
mickey 2010-02-11 15:24:49

 

The information about the Boards is very good. A comparative study of CBSE vs ICSE Vs IGSCE Vs IB Vs Cambridge O level and A level would be very useful with respect to a student's study in India and Abroad.It will enable the parents to decide about their children's school easily. Mickey
Meera 2008-12-10 14:27:10

 

THE ICSE and ISC boards are also recognized internationally. They used to be called Senior Cambridge earlier but as a board the standards are very high for all subjects- arts and scinece - higher than CBSE and the testing is for creative expression and concept clarity. This is additional information if you want your little one to join a ICSE/ISC school! But as a former ICSE the ISC student and as a present ICSE student's mother I can vouch for the wonderful learning curriculum -the nice text books and the good teachers who are required to teach this!!! Meera
Meera 2008-10-20 16:50:51

 

I find that of late the number of ICSE/ ISC schools seem to be coming down. Any reason? I think it is a shame if we do away with this board like they have in Delhi. One of the most balanced boards, ICSE/ISC provides very concept based learning covering sciences, social sciences and languages
 

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