ICSE Class 10 History & Civics Syllabus 2026-27 — Complete Guide with Exam Pattern & Tips

What's New in 2026-27?

The ICSE Class 10 History & Civics syllabus for 2026-27 retains its dual structure — Civics (Indian Constitution and Government) and History (Indian National Movement and World History). CISCE continues to introduce competency-based questions including assertion-reason, source-based extracts, newspaper headline analysis, and chronological ordering. Students should focus on understanding causes, consequences, and significance rather than mere dates and events.

History & Civics (HCG Paper 1) carries 80 marks for the theory examination and 20 marks for Internal Assessment. Duration: 2 hours.

Syllabus Overview

Part	Section	Topics	Marks
Part I	Compulsory	Short-answer questions from entire syllabus	30 marks
Part II — Section A	Civics (answer 2 of 3)	Union Legislature, Union Executive, Judiciary	20 marks
Part II — Section B	History (answer 3 of 5)	1857 Revolt to United Nations, NAM	30 marks

Chapter-wise Detailed Syllabus

CIVICS

1. The Union Legislature (Parliament)

Composition of Parliament — Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha. Qualifications, tenure, powers, and functions of each house. Speaker of Lok Sabha — election, powers, and role. Law-making process — introduction, passage, and assent. Money Bill vs. Ordinary Bill. Joint sitting of Parliament. Parliamentary privileges and question hour.

2. The Union Executive

The President: Election (electoral college), qualifications, tenure, powers (executive, legislative, judicial, emergency, military). Ordinance-making power. Removal (impeachment).

The Prime Minister and Council of Ministers: Appointment, powers, and functions. Collective responsibility. Cabinet vs. Council of Ministers. Relationship between President and PM.

3. The Judiciary

Supreme Court: Composition, appointment of judges, qualifications, tenure. Original, appellate, and advisory jurisdiction. Judicial review. PIL (Public Interest Litigation).

High Court: Composition, jurisdiction. Subordinate courts. Independence of the judiciary — security of tenure, fixed salaries, contempt power. Lok Adalat — composition, advantages, types of cases.

HISTORY

4. The First War of Independence (1857)

Causes — political, economic, military, social, religious, and immediate (greased cartridges). Course of the revolt — major centres (Delhi, Kanpur, Lucknow, Jhansi), leaders (Bahadur Shah Zafar, Rani Laxmibai, Tantia Tope, Nana Saheb). Causes of failure. Results and significance — end of Company rule, Queen's Proclamation 1858.

5. Growth of Nationalism

Factors promoting nationalism — western education, press, social reform movements, economic exploitation, racial discrimination. Formation of INC (1885) — Allan Octavian Hume. Moderates (1885-1905) — leaders (Dadabhai Naoroji, Gokhale, Pherozeshah Mehta), methods (petitions, prayers, constitutional agitation), achievements and limitations. Assertive Nationalists (1905-1919) — leaders (Tilak, Lala Lajpat Rai, Bipin Chandra Pal), Swadeshi Movement, partition of Bengal (1905), anti-partition agitation.

6. The Freedom Struggle — Major Phases

Gandhian Era: Non-Cooperation Movement (1920-22), Civil Disobedience Movement (1930-34) — Dandi March, Salt Satyagraha. Quit India Movement (1942) — 'Do or Die' slogan. INA and Subhas Chandra Bose. Towards independence — Cabinet Mission, Mountbatten Plan, Indian Independence Act 1947.

Important landmarks: Jallianwala Bagh (1919), Rowlatt Act, Khilafat Movement, Simon Commission, Round Table Conferences, Government of India Act 1935, Direct Action Day.

7. The First World War (1914-18) and The Second World War (1939-45)

WWI: Causes (imperialism, militarism, nationalism, alliance system, assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand). Major events, Treaty of Versailles and its harsh terms, League of Nations.

WWII: Causes (Treaty of Versailles, rise of dictatorships, appeasement, failure of League of Nations). Major events, consequences, formation of UN.

8. Rise of Dictatorships

Fascism in Italy: Causes of rise, Mussolini's march on Rome, features of Fascism, aggressive foreign policy.

Nazism in Germany: Causes (Treaty of Versailles, economic crisis, Weimar Republic failure), Hitler's rise, features of Nazism, anti-Semitism, aggressive expansionism.

9. The United Nations

Formation — Atlantic Charter, San Francisco Conference (1945). Objectives and principles. Principal organs — General Assembly, Security Council, ICJ, ECOSOC, Secretariat, Trusteeship Council. Functions and powers of each organ. Veto power. UN agencies — WHO, UNICEF, UNESCO.

10. Non-Aligned Movement (NAM)

Origin and meaning. Founders — Nehru, Tito, Nasser, Sukarno, Nkrumah. Bandung Conference (1955). Principles of NAM. Belgrade Conference (1961). Relevance in the modern world. India's role in NAM.

Exam Pattern 2026-27

Component	Details	Marks
Part I	Compulsory — MCQs, short answers from entire syllabus	30 marks
Part II — Section A (Civics)	Answer any 2 out of 3 questions	20 marks
Part II — Section B (History)	Answer any 3 out of 5 questions	30 marks
Internal Assessment	Project work, periodic tests	20 marks
Total		100 marks

Prescribed Textbooks

• Total History & Civics for ICSE Class 10 — Morning Star (Dolly Ellen Sequeira)
• History & Civics for Class 10 — Avichal Publishing Company
• Concise History & Civics — Selina Publishers
• CISCE specimen papers and previous years' board papers

Preparation Tips

1. Start with Civics — it's more scoring — The three Civics chapters (Legislature, Executive, Judiciary) have predictable questions. Master comparison tables: Lok Sabha vs. Rajya Sabha, SC vs. HC, President vs. PM.
2. Create a timeline for History — From 1857 to 1947, create a chronological timeline of all major events with dates. This helps in sequencing questions and understanding cause-effect relationships.
3. Focus on the Gandhian movements — Non-Cooperation, Civil Disobedience, and Quit India are the highest-weightage History topics. Know causes, events, significance, and why each movement was withdrawn.
4. Practise MCQ formats — CISCE has introduced assertion-reason, newspaper-headline, and source-based MCQs. Practise these formats from specimen papers.
5. Memorise key comparisons — Fascism vs. Nazism, Moderates vs. Assertive Nationalists, General Assembly vs. Security Council, Money Bill vs. Ordinary Bill. These are guaranteed questions.
6. Answer in points, not paragraphs — Use numbered points with bold keywords for Part II questions. This makes it easier for examiners to award marks.
7. Know your dates and names — Part I short answers test specific dates, names of Viceroys, and one-line facts. These are easy marks if revised properly.