An important tip that every Class 10 Board Exam student needs to know immediately is that 50% of your board exam paper will consist of competency-based questions. This is not an estimate, but CBSE’s actual pattern since the session of 2024-25. However, 90% of students are still devoting their preparation time (race against time phrase meaning) to direct questions from the NCERTs that constitute only 50% of the paper. That’s why it’s so difficult for many students to get the paper right when they take (take with a grain of salt idiom synonym) it on test day.
The good news is CBSE has released official practice material to help you prepare the Competency Focused Practice Questions (CFPQ) with solutions, and the Curriculum Aligned Competency Based Test Items (CACBTI) for timed self-testing. This page has both download tables (subject-wise), a clear explanation of the paper pattern, and subject-specific tips so you know exactly what to expect. No need to open another tab.
Read More:
- CBSE Sample Papers Class 10 with Solutions for 2026 Exam
- CBSE Previous Year Question Papers for Class 10 All Subjects with Solutions
What Are CBSE Class 10 Competency-Based Questions?
There is a simple explanation: a normal question in NCERT asks you what you know! Competency based questions: asks you what you can do with what you know.
Take Maths. The basic question could be: What are the solutions of the quadratic equation x² – 5x + 6 = 0? However, a competency-based version of the same idea would call for a farmer to partition a rectangular field into two equal parts, provide the total area, and then ask you to determine the dimensions of the field by solving quadratic equations. You are making the same calculation. The context is just (just in case definition) real and unfamiliar, so you’re forced to think.
This is because of the shift in the National Education policy 2020 (NEP 2020) that advocated for a move away from rote learning to application-based assessment by CBSE. According to CBSE’s official circular (Acad-15/2024), it aims to create ‘an educational ecosystem based on critical thinking and real-life applications.’ The CBSE Class 10 competency-based questions are directly aligned with this framework as released in the CFPQ and CACBTI.
Quick insight: Competency based questions are not harder, they are different. After gaining the understanding that the answer will always be based on an NCERT concept in a new scenario, the format becomes very manageable after practicing it.
Check Out: CBSE 10th New Exam Pattern 2026-27
Why Competency Based Questions Matter for CBSE Class 10 Board Exam 2027?
CBSE Class 10 board exam 2027 will be the same. This is not an experiment to be repeated once a year, but a permanent solution. In Science and Maths, both the 80-mark papers are coming from application not memory questions, which means 40 marks are coming from questions that test application and not memory. The same applies to Social Science and English.
There is a visible difference in students’ ability to improve over a period of 2-3 weeks if they start practising these questions regularly, even 20-30 minutes a day. Why? The concepts are always at the NCERT level. What does the framing change? After you are familiar with reading a scenario and which chapter it corresponds to, the rest is just solving which you already know how to do.
Those who leave it for the last month tend to find the paper disorienting because it does not look like what they practised all year. That is the only real risk with this format, unfamiliarity, not difficulty.
Check Out: How to Attempt Lengthy CBSE Board Exam 2026 Paper in 3 Hours
Download: Competency Focused Practice Questions with Solutions (CFPQ)- All Subjects
The CBSE Class 10 Competency-Focused Question PDF series is prepared by CBSE in collaboration with Educational Initiatives (Ei). Each booklet is chapter-wise, packed with application-based items, and most importantly, comes with detailed solutions. This is what makes CFPQ the best starting point for preparation.
| Subject | What the CFPQ Covers | Source |
| Science (Class 10) | Chapter-wise questions on Physics, Chemistry & Biology include graph-based, experiment-based, and real-life scenario questions. | Download |
| Mathematics (Class 10) | All 14 chapters, Real Numbers to Probability, including case studies on real-life data | Download |
| English (Class 10) | Infographic-based unseen passages, inference MCQs, and application-based writing tasks | Download |
| Social Science (Class 10) | Source-based, map-based, cartoon analysis, data interpretation | Download |
Note: CFPQ PDFs are available free of cost on the official CBSE Academic website (idioms website) cbseacademic.nic.in. No login or payment needed. If you find them on any third-party site (idiom site) behind a paywall, that is not the official source.
Download: Curriculum Aligned Competency Based Test Items (CACBTI) – Subject-wise
The CACBTI class 10 PDF is a set of test papers, with no answers included. These are intended to replicate exam conditions after you have developed your knowledge and understanding by going through the CFPQ. Consider the following: CFPQ is your practice drill, and CACBTI is your mock test.
| Subject | Purpose | Source |
| Science (Class 10) | Timed practice with MCQs, assertion-reason sets, and case-based questions, no answer key | Download |
| Mathematics (Class 10) | Chapter-wise and mixed practice without an answer key | Download |
| English (Class 10) | Comprehension and writing-based test items | Download |
Check Out: CBSE Class 10th Preparation Tips 2025-26: Check Out the Subject-wise Preparation Tips
CBSE Class 10 Competency-Based Question Paper Pattern 2026-27
CBSE has split the Class 10 paper into two equal halves. One-half tests what you know. The other half of the competency-based questions tests what you can do with what you know:
Competency-Based Questions – 50% of the Paper
These show up in four formats:
- Application-Based MCQs (where the wrong options are designed around common mistakes)
- Case-based questions (a short scenario followed by 3-4 sub-questions),
- Source-based questions (a document, map, or cartoon you have to analyse)
- Application-based Questions – like infographics in English or experiment-based deductions in Science.
Other Question Types (50%)
The other half consists of direct multiple-choice questions with fixed answer choices, in addition to short and long answer questions in which step-wise marking is applied, so that a correct method with a wrong final answer still receives some of the marks.
One thing worth knowing: CBSE releases the Competency Focused Practice Questions chapter-wise, not section-wise. So there is a dedicated set for Real Numbers, a separate set for Life Processes, and so on, making it easy to practise alongside your chapter revision.
Pro tip: Start with chapters that have the highest weightage in the board paper, Quadratic Equations and Coordinate Geometry in Maths, Electricity and Chemical Reactions in Science. These chapters appear most frequently in case-based question sets.
CFPQ vs CACBTI – What Is the Difference and Which Should You Use First?
A lot of students download both and are not sure where to start. Here is a clean comparison:
| CFPQ (with Solutions) | CACBTI (Test Only) | |
| Has answer key? | Yes, detailed, step-wise solutions | No for self-testing |
| Best used for | Learning and understanding the format | Simulating exam conditions |
| When to use | Early in your preparation | After finishing the CFPQ practice |
| Released by | CBSE + Educational Initiatives (Ei) | CBSE |
Always start with CFPQ. Understand the format, check your solutions, and read the marking scheme to see what examiners reward. Then shift to CACBTI when you want to test yourself under timed conditions.
How to Download CBSE Class 10 Competency-Based Practice Questions PDF
The CBSE Class 10 Competency-Based Practice Questions PDF is easy to download. Follow these steps:
- Go to the official CBSE academic website that is – cbse.gov.in
- On the home page click on ‘Student Support Material’ from the menu, or use the search bar.
- Search for ‘Competency Focused Practice Questions Class 10’ or ‘CACBTI Class 10.’
- Select your subject. The PDF will display in the Browser.
- Click Ctrl+S (or the download icon in the browser) to save the file. To download on mobile, tap the three-dot menu and click Download.
All PDFs are free of charge. There is no need to register, or pay anything. If any site charges you to access these, please don’t go; these are accessible on CBSE’s official platform.
Subject-Wise Overview: What Do These PDFs Actually Contain?
Science
The CBSE Class 10 Science competency-based questions PDF is chapter-wise and covers all three sections – Physics, Chemistry, and Biology. Questions are mostly scenario or experiment-based. Always draw diagrams; they carry separate marks even when the written answer is incomplete.
Mathematics
The CBSE Class 10 Maths competency-based questions with solutions in the CFPQ cover all 14 chapters, with Quadratic Equations, Arithmetic Progressions, and Statistics appearing most in case-study format. The maths is NCERT-level only; the real-life framing is new.
English
The CBSE Class 10 English competency-based questions witness a definite change in the structure of unseen passages that become infographic in nature (tables, flowcharts, graphs) instead of paragraphs. Writing activities, such as letters and notices, are based on authentic contexts.
Social Science
The CBSE Class 10 Social Science competency-based questions are mostly source-based: historical excerpts, political cartoons, maps, or data tables, followed by analysis questions. The skill being tested is interpretation, not memorisation.
How to Actually Use These Practice Questions Without Wasting Time
The majority of students download and read these PDFs passively, or try to do them without a plan. Here are some things that really help:
- Revise the NCERT chapter first. Competency-based questions test the application of chapter concepts. If the concept itself is not clear, the application will not be either. Always read the chapter before attempting the CFPQ for that topic.
- When using case-study sets: Read through the text once. Use underlining to highlight numbers, units and key terms. Recognize the NCERT chapter to which the scenario belongs and then solve each sub-question according to that chapter method.
- Always write your work: Even in Science and Maths case-based questions and step wise grading of marks is given. Partial credit is given if a student gives the wrong answer, but the procedure is correct.
- Check the CBSE Marking Scheme, not just the answer. The Marking Scheme PDF (also on cbseacademic.nic.in) has a ‘Commonly Made Errors’ section for each question, which tells you exactly what examiners penalise.
- Switch to CACBTI after finishing CFPQ. Attempt CACBTI papers under timed, exam-like conditions, no notes, strict time. Then verify your answers against your NCERT knowledge and CFPQ solutions.
Frequently Asked Questions
Q. What are competency-based questions in Class 10?
In competency-based questions you are expected to demonstrate your understanding of the material, rather than to know the facts. Rather than ‘Define photosynthesis,’ a CBQ could describe an experiment with a plant, asking you to predict what would happen and explain why.
Q. How much weightage do competency-based questions carry in the 2027 boards?
Exactly 50% of the total theory marks, so in an 80-mark paper like Science or Maths, 40 marks will come from competency-based items. This is confirmed under the NEP 2020-aligned assessment framework and applies to the CBSE Class 10 board exam 2027.
Q. Are the CBSE Class 10 Competency-Based Practice Questions PDFs free?
Yes, completely. These resources are published by CBSE in collaboration with Educational Initiatives (Ei) and are available for free on cbseacademic.nic.in. No login, registration, or payment is required.
Q. How do I solve competency-based questions in Class 10 Maths?
Start by identifying which chapter the scenario maps to. If the question describes a savings plan with increasing monthly deposits, that is an arithmetic progression. If it talks about the shadow of a tower, that is Trigonometry. Once you identify the chapter, solve using the relevant formula or method and write every step, because step-wise marks apply even when the final answer is wrong.
Q. Does the CBSE Class 10 competency-based question pattern change every year?
The pattern 50% competency-based, 50% traditional is fixed under CBSE’s NEP 2020 framework and is not changing for the 2026-27 session. However, the specific scenarios and passages in the actual exam will always be new. That is why practising with CBSE Class 10 competency-based questions matters.
Wrapping Up
The CBSE Class 10 competency-based questions are the new normal and will not be phased out by any board beginning from the session 2025. Those students who have prepared early, with the correct paper will find the paper manageable. And students who do not prepare early will see that half of the paper is unfamiliar to them.
Download the CBSE Class 10 Competency-Focused Question PDF (CFPQ) for the subjects first. Solve the chapter-by-chapter, refer the solutions after attempting each chapter test and also pay attention to the marking scheme. After that, you can do timed practice using the CACBTI Class 10 PDF. They are both free, and both are released officially, and are prepared in a way that they perfectly follow the paper pattern.
Start early, stay consistent, and focus on understanding over memorising. That is the only strategy that works for this paper.
Written By: Saumya Sarin
Reviewed By: Motion Education Academic Team
Last Updated: May, 2026
