Was the Class 10th Math Paper Impossible? Students Speak Out on Length and Difficulty

The moment you walk out of a Math board exam, the first thing you do is look at your friends and say, "That was insane, right?" And if you felt that way after the CBSE Class 10 Maths exam on February 17, 2026, you were definitely not alone.

Some students came out relieved. Others came out frustrated. A few even felt the Basic paper had no business being called "basic." So what actually happened in there? More importantly, what do you do now?

The reactions outside exam centres were all over the place. While some students felt the paper was fair and doable, others, especially those who appeared for the Basic Maths paper, felt it was longer and trickier than expected.

One student even shared his frustration publicly, saying the paper was "extremely lengthy and difficult" for a Basic-level exam and that CBSE should reconsider the difficulty standards. That frustration? Completely valid. When you sit down for a paper labelled "Basic," you expect it to feel basic, and not as if you've accidentally picked up the wrong paper.

Teachers and subject experts who reviewed both papers gave a more balanced picture.

According to faculty at JAIN International Residential School, Bengaluru, the paper was moderate in difficulty, NCERT-focused, and was actually easier than last year's paper. They noted that students who had prepared well from the NCERT were able to attempt most questions confidently.

Sanjay Sharma, a Maths teacher from Yamuna Vihar, put it simply, "The Basic paper was moderately difficult. It was not very tough, but students had to think carefully. The good part is that all questions were from NCERT."

Preethi Rajeev Nair, Principal at Lancers Army Schools, confirmed the same; the paper was "strictly based on NCERT, with no out-of-syllabus questions."

So if it felt hard, it wasn't because the questions were unfair. For many students, it came down to two things: time management and how well they understood their concepts, not just memorised them.

Both the Basic and Standard papers had their tough spots.

For Basic Maths, the MCQs were slightly on the longer side and needed careful calculation rather than quick answers. Topics like circles and probability had some questions that required you to think a little harder. The five-mark section in Section D had a circles question that was specifically called "tricky" by teachers. But the case-study questions in Section E? Most experts said those were clear, practical, and manageable.

For Standard Maths, the paper needed more analytical thinking. Section D's last two questions were the most challenging, requiring detailed steps and deeper conceptual understanding. Section E, which had case-study questions, demanded careful reading and time management. Teachers from Shiv Nadar School and Amity International School noted that questions from theorems on circles, triangles, linear equations, and statistics needed a proper step-by-step presentation.

The common thread? Sections D and E in both papers took more time than students expected.

First, take a breath. One paper does not define you.

Second, understand that teachers across schools agree that the paper had enough direct, NCERT-based questions that most students who practised regularly would have scored. Internal choices were also given in several sections, which means you had flexibility in what you attempted.

If you feel you made mistakes in Section D or E specifically, you're not alone. Those sections were harder for almost everyone. The marking in board exams also gives credit for correct steps even if the final answer is wrong. So if you showed your work, you likely earned marks you don't even know about yet.

Whether you're waiting for results or preparing for upcoming papers in other subjects, here's what matters now:

And if you're a student yet to appear for your boards, this is your sign to go back to your NCERT, practice case-study questions, and time yourself while solving papers. Section E is not something you can wing on the day.

Was the Class 10 Maths paper 2026 impossible? No. Was it easy? Not entirely. It was what most board papers are. Manageable for those who were prepared, and stressful for those who weren't, especially under time pressure.

The paper was fair, NCERT-based, and within the syllabus. That's confirmed by multiple teachers and experts across schools in Delhi, Assam, Gurgaon, Noida, and Bengaluru.

If you felt it was hard, that's okay. That feeling is real, and it's valid. But don't let one tough paper shake your confidence in yourself. You've put in months of work. That doesn't disappear because one section felt longer than you expected.

Results will come. And when they do, you might just surprise yourself.