AI and Computational Thinking now compulsory in CBSE Class 9 and 10 from the 2026-27 session.

NEW DELHI, May 6 — The Central Board of Secondary Education has directed all affiliated schools to teach Computational Thinking and Artificial Intelligence as compulsory modules in Class 9 and 10 from the 2026-27 academic session. Schools have five weeks to retool their teacher training, source the new NCERT Class 9 textbooks, and brief parents — sessions across most CBSE schools open in early June.

The directive lands the same week NCERT's first NEP-aligned Class 9 textbooks went live on DIKSHA on May 1, with the new books titled Ganita Manjari for mathematics, Exploration for science, Kaveri for English, and Sharda for Sanskrit. Schools that have already begun teacher orientation are ahead of the curve; those that have not are now in a compressed window before the bell.

Computational Thinking and Artificial Intelligence are being introduced as compulsory modules in Class 9 and 10 with school-based assessment, formalising into an annual examination subject from 2027-28. A new interdisciplinary subject, Individuals in Society, has also been added at Class 9 level under the National Curriculum Framework for School Education 2023.

"All schools are directed to download the curriculum, sensitise teachers, and hold parent meetings before the new session," the board said in its circular issued earlier this month, asking principals to ensure compliance. The mandatory implementation timeline mirrors the rollout for Class 11 in the same session, while Class 10 and Class 12 are scheduled to transition in 2027-28.

Skill Education using NCERT's Kaushal Bodh textbook series is already mandatory in Class 6 to 8 under Circular Skill-81/2025, issued on October 28, 2025.

This is the third NEP-aligned curriculum milestone CBSE has pushed through this academic year, after the Class 6 third-language rule in early April and the Skill Education circular last October. The pattern is the same: rules go out, schools have weeks to comply, and parents start asking questions in WhatsApp groups by the second week of the new session — see the Class 6 third-language mandate for the same template playing out for younger classes.

The Class 12 result, expected in the third week of May, is the next CBSE moment for school offices already stretched by curriculum rollout. After that, attention shifts to NCERT's Class 11 textbook supply pipeline; Class 10 and Class 12 transitions land in the 2027-28 cycle.

Source: Sunbeam World School, AglaSem, Educart. Original notice: CBSE Skill Circular 81/2025.

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For schools planning the new session:

• Academics Management — set up subject offerings, teaching batches, and the new compulsory modules in one place
• Subject Offerings for Indian Schools — configure Class 9 and 10 subject lists session-wise

For the school-based assessment piece:

• Co-Scholastic Assessment for CBSE & ICSE — record school-based AI module observations against rubrics
• Competency Observations Software for Schools — log NEP-aligned competency evidence
• Bulk Update Student Records — clean up subject and APAAR fields before the new session opens

Earlier in this thread:

• CBSE Class 12 result by mid-May; board denies OSM glitch