The CTET syllabus is set by CBSE and printed in Appendix I of the information bulletin. Paper I is for those who want to teach Classes I to V, and Paper II is for Classes VI to VIII. Each paper has 150 one-mark multiple choice questions, takes two and a half hours, and has no negative marking.
About half of the test is about how to teach, not only what to teach. Most subject sections are split into content questions and pedagogy questions. The topics below are taken from the CTET September 2026 bulletin, which applies to the 22nd edition that CBSE has fixed for 12 and 13 December 2026.
CTET exam pattern and syllabus at a glance
| Section | Paper I (Classes I-V) | Paper II (Classes VI-VIII) |
|---|---|---|
| Child Development and Pedagogy | 30 | 30 |
| Language I | 30 | 30 |
| Language II | 30 | 30 |
| Mathematics | 30 | - |
| Environmental Studies | 30 | - |
| Mathematics and Science, or Social Studies | - | 60 |
| Total | 150 | 150 |
A Paper II candidate who is not a maths, science or social studies teacher picks either of the two 60-question options. If you want to teach both levels, you take both papers. Earlier syllabus PDFs labelled 2024 or 2025 show the same five-section structure, but always study from the latest bulletin.
Paper I syllabus (Classes I to V)
Child Development and Pedagogy (30)
- Child development, primary school child (15): development and learning, principles of development, heredity and environment, socialisation, Piaget, Kohlberg and Vygotsky, child-centred and progressive education, intelligence and multi-dimensional intelligence, language and thought, gender, individual differences, assessment for and of learning, school-based assessment and CCE.
- Inclusive education and children with special needs (5): learners from disadvantaged backgrounds, children with learning difficulties, talented and specially abled learners.
- Learning and pedagogy (10): how children think and learn, why they fail, the child as a problem solver, children's errors as steps in learning, cognition and emotions, motivation, and personal and environmental factors.
Mathematics (30)
- Content (15): geometry, shapes and spatial understanding, solids around us, numbers, addition and subtraction, multiplication, division, measurement, weight, time, volume, data handling, patterns and money.
- Pedagogical issues (15): nature of maths and logical thinking, place of maths in the curriculum, language of maths, community maths, evaluation, problems of teaching, error analysis, and diagnostic and remedial teaching.
Environmental Studies (30)
- Content (15): family and friends (relationships, work and play, animals, plants), food, shelter, water, travel, and things we make and do.
- Pedagogical issues (15): concept and scope of EVS, integrated EVS, learning principles, approaches to presenting concepts, activities, experiments, discussion, CCE, teaching aids and problems.
Language I and Language II (30 each)
- Language I comprehension (15): two unseen passages, one prose or drama and one poem, with questions on comprehension, inference, grammar and verbal ability.
- Language II comprehension (15): two unseen prose passages with questions on comprehension, grammar and verbal ability.
- Pedagogy of language development (15 in each): learning and acquisition, principles of language teaching, listening and speaking, role of grammar, teaching in a diverse classroom, language skills, evaluating proficiency, teaching-learning materials and remedial teaching.
Paper II syllabus (Classes VI to VIII)
Child Development and Pedagogy (30)
The topics match Paper I, with the same 15, 5 and 10 split, but questions focus on the elementary school child of 11 to 14 years.
Mathematics and Science (60)
- Mathematics content (20): knowing our numbers, playing with numbers, whole numbers, negative numbers and integers, fractions, introduction to algebra, ratio and proportion, basic geometrical ideas, elementary shapes, symmetry, construction, mensuration and data handling.
- Mathematics pedagogy (10): nature of maths, its place in the curriculum, language of maths, community maths, evaluation, remedial teaching and problems of teaching.
- Science content (20): food, materials, the world of the living, moving things, people and ideas, how things work (electric current, circuits, magnets), natural phenomena and natural resources.
- Science pedagogy (10): nature and structure of science, aims, approaches, method of science, innovation, teaching aids, evaluation and remedial teaching.
Social Studies or Social Science (60)
- Content (40): history from the earliest societies and first cities through new kingdoms, the Sultans of Delhi, the creation of an empire, the establishment of Company power, the revolt of 1857-58, reform movements and the nationalist movement to India after independence; geography including the earth in the solar system, air, water, human environment, resources and agriculture; and social and political life, covering diversity, government at all levels, democracy, the Constitution, Parliament, the judiciary, media, gender and social justice.
- Pedagogical issues (20): nature of social science, classroom processes, critical thinking, enquiry and evidence, problems of teaching, primary and secondary sources, project work and evaluation.
Language I and Language II (30 each)
These follow the same pattern as Paper I: 15 comprehension questions and 15 questions on the pedagogy of language development in each language.
Level of questions and language choice
Paper I questions are based on the NCERT syllabus for Classes I to V, but their difficulty can go up to the secondary stage. Paper II is based on Classes VI to VIII, with difficulty up to the senior secondary stage. The main question paper is bilingual, in Hindi and English. For Language I and Language II, you choose two different languages from the 27 listed in the bulletin, such as English, Hindi, Bengali, Tamil, Telugu, Marathi and Urdu.
How to download the CTET syllabus PDF
- Go to ctet.nic.in.
- Open the latest information bulletin from the public notices.
- Scroll to Appendix I, "Structure and Content of Syllabus", and save the PDF.
- For chapter detail, use NCERT textbooks of the classes named for your paper, as the bulletin advises.
How to use this syllabus
- Do not skip pedagogy. It carries half the marks in most subject sections.
- Learn the CDP theories with classroom examples, since questions are usually situation-based.
- Read NCERT books of your classes for content, then solve timed practice sets.
- Pick the language you are strongest in as Language I.
Next steps
Eligibility, pass marks and certificate validity are covered on the CTET exam overview . When the exam nears, the CTET admit card download steps explain the city slip and reporting rules, and the CTET answer key and challenge process helps you check your score afterwards. Planning to teach in colleges later? See the UGC NET Paper 1 and Paper 2 syllabus . Other topic lists are on our syllabus hub .
HindiScope is not an official site; confirm the syllabus in the latest bulletin on ctet.nic.in.