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CTET / State TET guidance: how the paper is cracked, from your own numbers
Central Teacher Eligibility Test — Paper 2 (Classes VI-VIII). Conducted by Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE). Lakshmi knows this paper from the site's own pattern pages — and reads your scores, your mocks and what you haven't touched before saying a word.
CTET / State TET guidance · Plan my weeksLakshmi · AI guide · has read your profile
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On the table
Carries the marks · Child Development & PedagogyChild Development — Elementary SchoolQs in paper 7–8 Open the chapter
The paper · CTET / State TET150 questions, 150 marksNo negative marking
Lakshmi“Before we plan anything: when do you sit CTET / State TET, and how many hours a day do you really have?”
Talk TypeEnd & get my plan06:12
Ends in a plan
Stages
3
The paper
150 questions, 150 marks
Marking
No negative marking
Your guide
Lakshmi, free
How it's decided
CTET / State TET, stage by stage
Typically twice a year — CBSE has historically run cycles around July and December, with exact dates varying by year. CBSE has used both offline pen-and-paper (OMR) and computer-based test (CBT) formats in different cycles — check the current notification for the mode in use.
CTET Paper 2 examThe only test
One 150-minute paper, 150 single-correct MCQs across 4 sections, with no sectional time lock — the fourth section is an elective choice of Mathematics & Science or Social Studies. Zero negative marking throughout.
Certificate awardQualifying outcome, not a rank
Score at or above 60% (General category; relaxation for reserved categories) and CBSE issues a CTET certificate valid for 7 years from the date of result. There is no merit list and no interview within CTET itself.
Recruitment applicationA separate process, afterwards
Holding a valid CTET certificate makes you eligible to apply for teaching posts in KVS, NVS and other central schools directly, and for many state government and private school recruitment drives — some of which additionally weight your raw CTET score alongside their own selection process.
The paper
What you sit, and how it is marked
CTET Paper 2 (Classes VI-VIII)
150 questions150 marks150 minNo negative marking
Qualifying certificate exam — no rank, cutoff-based
Marking: None — wrong and unattempted answers both score 0
Child Development & Pedagogy, Language I and Language II are compulsory for every candidate. The fourth section is an elective: a candidate answers either the 60-question Mathematics & Science block or the 60-question Social Studies block, never both — this hub covers the Mathematics & Science elective.
Where the marks come from
Where your 150-mark score comes from
CTET is not a competitive-rank exam — there is no merit list and no interview within CTET itself. e. 90/150, for General category, with relaxation for reserved categories) and CBSE issues a CTET certificate valid for 7 years, the baseline eligibility credential for teacher-recruitment drives. There is zero negative marking, so attempt every question — a wrong answer costs exactly as much as an unattempted one: nothing.
Child Development & Pedagogy30 marks · 20%
Compulsory for every candidate. Scenario- and theorist-based questions on child development, inclusive education and pedagogy — conceptual understanding beats rote definitions here.
Language I30 marks · 20%
Compulsory. Roughly half the marks are unseen reading comprehension; the rest tests language-teaching pedagogy and acquisition theory.
Language II30 marks · 20%
Compulsory, in a second chosen language different from Language I. Same comprehension-plus-pedagogy structure as Language I, so the concepts transfer directly.
Mathematics & Science60 marks · 40%
The elective block modelled by this hub. Pedagogical Issues is the single heaviest topic in both Mathematics and Science, each worth nearly double any other individual chapter.
What changed this cycle
Things last year's advice gets wrong
Zero negative marking is current CBSE policy — both wrong and unattempted answers score exactly 0, so there is no penalty for attempting every question.
The 4th section remains an elective choice between Mathematics & Science (60 Q) and Social Studies (60 Q) — a candidate answers only one, never both; this hub models the Mathematics & Science elective.
The CTET certificate stays valid for 7 years from the date of the result, after which a candidate must requalify to remain eligible for fresh recruitment applications.
CBSE continues to conduct CTET roughly twice a year, historically around July and December, in either pen-and-paper or CBT mode depending on the cycle.
The chapters that carry the marks
Where a plan for CTET / State TET usually starts
The highest-weight chapters in each subject, linked to their notes. Weights are estimates from previous papers where the conducting body publishes none. Your guide weighs these against your own scores.
CTET, state TETs and UGC NET: pedagogy questions, Paper 1 and the subject paper. Pick one to start, or just talk — Lakshmi has read your profile either way.
1. CTET Paper 2 exam — The only test. 2. Certificate award — Qualifying outcome, not a rank. 3. Recruitment application — A separate process, afterwards.
How is the CTET / State TET paper marked?
CTET Paper 2 (Classes VI-VIII): 150 questions, 150 marks, 150 min (no sectional time lock). Marking: None — wrong and unattempted answers both score 0
Is there negative marking in CTET / State TET?
No. None — wrong and unattempted answers both score 0
What decides the final merit in CTET / State TET?
CTET is not a competitive-rank exam — there is no merit list and no interview within CTET itself. e. 90/150, for General category, with relaxation for reserved categories) and CBSE issues a CTET certificate valid for 7 years, the baseline eligibility credential for teacher-recruitment drives. There is zero negative marking, so attempt every question — a wrong answer costs exactly as much as an unattempted one: nothing.
What has changed in CTET / State TET recently?
Zero negative marking is current CBSE policy — both wrong and unattempted answers score exactly 0, so there is no penalty for attempting every question.
What does the CTET / State TET guide know about me?
Only what you have done on the site: your scores by subject and chapter for CTET / State TET, what you have never been tested on, the kinds of mistake you make across topics, your mocks, your projected score, your error book, your last two weeks and your goals. You can open the exact page Lakshmi reads before you start.
Is it free?
Talking to Lakshmi, the AI guide, is free — up to four talks a day. Real guides who have cleared or teach CTET / State TET set their own prices, and many offer a free call or a short demo.
Every fact on this page comes from the exam's blueprint on this site. How the guide uses it: how Guidance works.
