The Council for the Indian Secondary Certificate Examinations (CISCE), a non-governmental board of school education in India, conducts the Indian Certificate of Secondary Education (ICSE) for class 10 students. The board was established by the local examination syndicate of the University of Cambridge. Headquartered in New Delhi, CISCE is one of the most famous educational boards that conducts ICSE class 10 and ISC class 12 board exams yearly.
CISCE is also responsible for providing the syllabus, textbooks and exam patterns. The ICSE offers examinations in the English medium general education curriculum per the New Education Policy 1986. All the schools affiliated with ICSE follow the ICSE board pattern, ICSE exam pattern, prescribed books and syllabus.
ICSE Class 10: Subjects
A student must take a group of subjects to write the 10th ICSE 2025 exam. The total number of subjects in Class 10 is seven, and the combination consists of compulsory and optional subjects.
- Group I English, Second Language, Geography and History-Civics as compulsory subjects.
- Group II – Choose any two subjects from Science, Mathematics, Economics, Commercial Studies, etc.
- Group III – Choose any one subject from Home Science, Fashion Designing, Computer Applications, etc.
ICSE Class 10: Syllabus & Study Material for 2024-25
Students can prepare better if they are familiar with the syllabus, which will help them understand the question pattern more easily. All subjects are vital. As a result, if students want to get good grades, they must be familiar with the curriculum.
English
Paper I: English Language
Q1: Write a composition of about 300– 350 words from a choice of subjects
Q2: Letter writing
Q3: Write about a specific situation:
- A notice-based text on a given direction
- Write an email on the given topic
Q4: Unseen prose passage
Q5: Functional grammar
Paper II: Literature in English
Drama and Prose
- Julius Caesar: William Shakespeare (Act III, Act IV and Act V only)
- Treasure Trove – A collection of ICSE Poem and Short Stories)
POETRY:
- Haunted Houses – H.W. Longfellow
- The Glove and the Lions – Leigh Hunt
- When Great Trees fall – Maya Angelou
- A Considerable Speck – Robert Frost
- The Power of Music – Sukumar Ray
PROSE (short stories):
- With the Photographer – Stephen Leacock
- The Elevator – William Sleator
- The Girl Who Can – Ama Ata Aidoo
- The Pedestrian – Ray Bradbury
- The Last Lesson – Alphonse Daudet
Second Language
Indian Language
- Ao-Naga, Assamese, Bengali, Dzongkha, Garo, Gujarati, Hindi, Kannada, Kashmiri, Khasi, Kokborok, Lepcha, Malayalam, Manipuri, Marathi, Mizo, Nepali, Odia, Punjabi, Sanskrit, Tamil, Tangkhul, Telugu, Urdu, or any other language of an Indian community approved by CISCE.
Modern Foreign Language
History, Civics & Geography
Section A: Civics
The Union Legislature
The Union Executive
- The President
- The Vice-President
- Prime Minister and Council of Ministers
The Judiciary
- The Supreme Court
- The High Courts
- Subordinate Courts
Section B: History
The Indian National Movement (1857 – 1917)
- The First War of Independence, 1857
- Factors leading to the growth of Nationalism – socio-religious reform movements and the role of the press
- First Phase of the Indian National Movement (1885-1907)
- Second Phase of the Indian National Movement (1905-1916)
Mass Phase of the National Movement (1915-1947)
- Mahatma Gandhi – Non-Cooperation Movement
- Khilafat Movement, Rowlatt Act, Jallianwala Bagh Tragedy
- Programme and suspension – Chauri Chaura incident and impact of the Movement
- The Civil Disobedience Movement
- Reaction to the Simon Commission, Declaration of Poorna Swaraj at the Lahore Session of 1929
- Dandi March
- Programme and impact of the Movement
- Gandhi-Irwin Pact and the Second Round Table Conference
- The Quit India Movement
- Quit India Resolution and
- The significance of the Movement
- Forward Bloc (objectives) and INA (objectives and contribution of Subhas Chandra Bose)
- Independence and Partition of India – Mountbatten Plan (clauses and its acceptance) and the Indian Independence Act of 1947 (clauses only)
The Contemporary World
- The First World War
- Rise of Dictatorships
- The Second World War
- United Nations
- The objectives of the U.N
- Major agencies of the United Nations: UNICEF, WHO and UNESCO – any four functions only
- Non-Aligned Movement
Section C: Geography
Part I: Map Work
Interpretation of Topographical Maps
- Locating features with the help of a four-figure grid reference.
- Definition of contour and contour interval. Identification of landforms marked by contours (steep slope and gentle slope), triangulated height, spot height and benchmark.
- Interpretation of colour tints used on a topographical survey of India map.
- Identification and definition of types of scale given on the map.
- Measuring direct distance and calculating area using the scale given therein.
- Marking directions between different locations using eight cardinal points.
- Identify Sites of prominent villages and/or towns, types of occupation and means of communication with the help of the index given at the bottom of the sheet.
- Identification of drainage patterns (Dendritic, Trellis, Radial, and Disappearing) and settlement patterns (Scattered and Compact).
- Identification of direction of flow left bank and right bank of a river.
- Identification of natural and man-made features.
- Meaning of important terms- Relative height/depth, broken ground, surveyed tree, fireline, causeway, aqueduct and digging
Map of India
- Mountains, Peaks and Plateaus
- Plains
- Desert
- Rivers
- Water Bodies
- Pass
- Longitude
- Direction of Winds
- Distribution of Minerals
- Soil Distribution
- Cities
- Population
Part II: Geography of India
- Location, Extent and Physical features
- Climate
- Soil Resources
- Natural Vegetation
- Water Resources
- Mineral and Energy Resources
- Agriculture
- Manufacturing Industries
- Transport
- Waste Management
Science
Science Paper I: Physics
- Force, Work, Power and Energy
- Light
- Sound
- Electricity and Magnetism
- Heat
- Modern Physics
Science Paper II: Chemistry
- Periodic Properties and variations of Properties
- Chemical Bonding
- Study of Acids, Bases and Salts
- Analytical Chemistry
- Mole Concept and Stoichiometry
- Electrolysis
- Metallurgy
- Study of Compounds
- Hydrogen Chloride
- Ammonia
- Nitric Acid
- Sulphuric Acid
- Organic Chemistry
Science Paper – III: Biology
- Basic Biology
- Plant Physiology
- Human Anatomy and Physiology
- Population
- Pollution
- Human Evolution
Mathematics
- Commercial Mathematics
- Algebra
- Geometry
- Mensuration
- Trigonometry
- Statistics
- Probability
Economics
- The Productive Mechanism
- Theory of Demand and Supply
- Market
- Banking in India
- Inflation
- Consumer Awareness
Commercial Studies
- Stakeholders in Commercial Organisations
- Marketing and Sales
- Finance and Accounting
- Human Resources
- Logistics
- Banking
- Government initiatives in Environment Protection.
Computer Application
- Revision of Class IX Syllabus
- Introduction to Object Oriented Programming concepts
- Elementary Concept of Objects and Classes
- Values and Data types
- Operators in Java
- Input in Java
- Mathematical Library Methods
- Conditional constructs in Java
- Iterative constructs in Java
- Class as the Basis of all Computation
- User-defined Methods
- Constructors
- Library classes
- Encapsulation
- Arrays
- String handling
Fashion Designing
- The choice, purchase, use and care of tools and equipment, including sewing machines, for dressmaking.
- Definition of a pattern. Methods of preparing patterns. This should include knowledge of figure measurements, awareness of figure problems, layouts and the sequence or processes in assembling garments. Methods of pressing.
- The use and making of simple or traditional designs and decorative stitchery in the construction and decoration of garments and articles.
ICSE Class 10 Study Plan to Maximize Score in 2025 Exam
Consider these points to obtain good marks in your upcoming exam:
- To score good marks in ICSE class 10 exam, you will need a proper study schedule. You can design the routine according to your strengths and weaknesses.
- Try to practice word problems as much as possible to enhance your problem-solving skills.
- Always follow the schedule, which enables you to study every day without putting much pressure on yourself. Do not set unrealistic goals, as they can demotivate and hinder your productivity.
- Study every day so that you can complete the complete syllabus two months before the exam.
- Make sure you revise all the important topics before the exam. The revision will help you retain and memorize all the concepts effectively.
- For ICSE class 10 exam preparation, solve previous years’ question papers to have a good idea about the type of questions asked.
List of Future Exams after Class 10
Several Olympiads for class 10 students help them in their prospects. In addition, students can represent their school at the national and international levels. Given below is a list of some competitive exams.
- Class 10 National Talent Search Examination (NTSE)
- Class 10 Indian National Olympiad (INO)
- Class 10 National Interactive Maths Olympiad ( NIMO)
