CTET Exam Analysis 2026 for Shift 1 (7 Feb), Check Attempts and Difficulty Level

The Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE) has conducted the CTET 2026 examination for Shift 1 on 7 February 2026 from 9:30 am to 12 noon. Thousands of teaching aspirants appeared for the exam with the aim of qualifying for primary and upper primary teaching roles across India. As the exam concluded, candidates began sharing their feedback regarding question patterns, difficulty level, and section-wise balance.

This article presents a detailed CTET Exam Analysis 2026 for Shift 1 (7 Feb), covering student reactions, good attempts, subject-wise difficulty, and expected performance indicators for Paper II. The analysis is compiled from candidate feedback and trends observed in recent CTET sessions.

CTET Exam Analysis 2026

CTET 2026 marks the 21st edition of the Central Teacher Eligibility Test. The exam was conducted offline in OMR-based mode across multiple centres in two shifts. Shift 1 primarily coveres Paper II for Classes VI-VIII followed by Paper I for Classes I-V in shift 2

Each paper consisted of 150 multiple-choice questions, carrying one mark each, with a total duration of 150 minutes. As per the standard CTET pattern, there was no negative marking, which allowed candidates to attempt the paper more confidently. Based on initial feedback, the overall paper structure remained NCERT-focused, predictable in pattern, and aligned with previous CTET trends.

Student Review of CTET Exam 7 Feb Shift 1

Candidates who appeared in Shift 1 described the paper as balanced and manageable, especially for those who prepared strictly from NCERT books and previous year CTET papers.

• Overall paper was easy to moderate and well balanced across sections.
• Most questions were direct, concept-based, and strictly NCERT-oriented.
• The exam tested understanding and application rather than rote memorisation.
• Child Development and Pedagogy (CDP) was scoring, with questions from learning theories, inclusive education, assessment, and classroom practices.
• No unexpected or out-of-syllabus questions were reported in CDP.
• English and Hindi sections focused on comprehension, basic grammar, and language pedagogy.
• Passage-based questions were simple and time-friendly.
• Language pedagogy questions tested practical teaching sense.
• Mathematics-Science section leaned more towards pedagogy and conceptual clarity.
• Mathematics questions focused on learning objectives, teaching methods, and assessment types.
• Science questions were mostly NCERT-based, including basic experiments and daily-life applications.
• Social Studies was NCERT-driven and covered geography, history, polity, environment, and social issues.
• Questions tested awareness of human rights, constitutional provisions, social reformers, and regional history.
• Time management was not a major issue for most candidates.
• Candidates with strong NCERT preparation and previous CTET practice found the paper comfortable.

CTET Exam 2026 Good Attempts and Difficulty Level

The CTET Exam 2026 Paper II was rated easy to moderate by most candidates, with a healthy range of good attempts across all sections. Overall, candidates could comfortably attempt 115–130 questions, making this shift favourable for those with strong NCERT-based preparation.

CTET Exam Analysis 2026 for Shift 1 (Paper II)

CTET Paper II required deeper subject understanding along with teaching methodology.

Child Development & Pedagogy

• Skimming and scanning
• Shared reading and guided reading practices
• Reading as meaning-making versus letter-sound decoding
• Relationship between reading and writing skills
• Writing process stages
• Dictation as a language-learning activity
• Language learning principles
• Language development in children (12-18 months, early sounds and speech)
• Creativity, imagination, and cognitive development
• Learning as a continuous process
• Listening skill assessment methods
• Performance-based assessment
• Characteristics of formative assessment
• Testing versus assessment
• Paper-pencil tests versus alternative assessment
• Assessment of reading fluency and comprehension
• Assessment outside school premises (incorrect statement)
• Brainstorming as a classroom activity (word at the centre of the blackboard)
• Constructivism, behaviourism, and nativism
• Zone of Proximal Development (ZPD)
• Scaffolding and teacher support strategies
• Inclusive classroom practices
• Marginalisation and inclusion with reference to Adivasi learners
• Constitutional safeguards, human rights, and fundamental rights in education
• Learning disabilities and language disorders
• Dyslexia
• Dyscalculia
• Dysgraphia
• Aphasia

Hindi

• बालक की भाषा अर्जन प्रक्रिया
• पठन, लेखन और श्रवण कौशल
• सृजनात्मकता और कल्पनाशीलता
• उच्चारण, शब्द पहचान, ध्वनि जागरूकता
• वर्तनी और पठन प्रवाह
• कुलेख (Dictation) और सहपाठी कार्य
• वचन
• समास
• प्रत्यय
• काल
• अर्थबोध
• गद्यांश आधारित प्रश्न (भावार्थ, शब्दार्थ, निष्कर्ष)

English

• Sequence of events
• Cause and effect
• Vocabulary (youthful, flavourful, etc.)
• Opposites and synonyms
• Clauses (noun clause, adverb clause)
• True/False statements
• Reason-based questions (why Emperor called doctor, why he was angry)
• English Passage 2: Flamingo City – Rann of Kachchh
• Vocabulary (destruction, proliferation, honoured)
• Grammar and clause identification
• Error spotting
• Factual inference from passage
• English Passage 3: Health Clubs and Physical Health
• Main idea and inference
• Vocabulary (nominal, prerequisite)
• Part of speech
• Clause identification
• Cause-effect reasoning
• Workplace health and productivity

Mathematics

• Missing digits in numerical expression, number sense
• Algebraic conditions, sum of variables
• Solving linear equations and substitution
• Factorisation of algebraic expressions
• Profit, loss, discount, and cash discount
• Ratio and proportion with addition of variables
• Supplementary angles and linear equations
• Triangle angles, angle bisectors, and geometry reasoning
• Pythagorean theorem, right triangle validation
• Rotational symmetry of letters
• Properties of parallelogram and diagonals
• Trapezium area, perimeter, and height
• Rectangle geometry, diagonal distance, speed–time
• Volume of cubes and conservation of volume
• Mean, median, and mode
• Probability with playing cards
• HCF with remainders (Euclid’s division concept)
• Decimal addition and place value
• Comparison of fractions
• Unit digit pattern in squares of numbers
• Assessment objectives in mathematics learning
• History of mathematics, Indian mathematicians
• Activity-based learning, area and perimeter objectives
• Remedial teaching for algebraic misconceptions
• NCF 2005 skills in arithmetic and algebra
• Linking mathematics with real-life architecture
• Use of concrete materials to clarify 3D shapes
• Enlarging and reducing figures on grids, geometry pedagogy
• Closed-ended questions and types of thinking

Science

• Identification of science process skills such as observation, classification, hypothesis, inference, and measurement.
• Matching classroom or lab activities with appropriate science process skills.
• Differentiating between testable scientific questions and non-scientific questions.
• Understanding evidence-based reasoning in scientific inquiry.
• Objectives of including historical anecdotes in science textbooks.
• Science as a socially and culturally embedded human activity.
• Educational value of field visits and excursions in science learning.
• Real-life understanding of corrosion through the Iron Pillar of Qutub Minar.
• Inquiry-based learning through observation of rusted and non-rusted objects.
• Formation of ecosystems through interrelationship between organisms and environment.
• Causes of species becoming endangered or vulnerable.
• Classification of agriculture-based activities like horticulture, pisciculture, sericulture, and viticulture.
• Causes of corrosion and methods of its prevention.
• Anodising as a method to protect iron from rusting.
• Chemical reason for silver articles turning black in air.
• Comparison of brightness of bulbs in series and parallel electric circuits.
• Hormonal changes during puberty in humans.
• Role of endocrine glands such as pituitary, thyroid, and adrenal.
• Gaseous exchange in plants and insects through stomata and spiracles.
• Structural differences in respiration between insects and plants.
• Pathway of blood circulation through the human heart and lungs.
• Identification of acidic, basic, and neutral solutions using China rose indicator.
• Relationship between mechanical energy and momentum.
• Conditions under which force does or does not perform work.
• Rotation of Earth and its relation to local time and midday sun.
• Time taken by the Moon to complete one revolution around the Earth.
• Shape of the Earth described as a geoid.
• Identification of major latitudinal lines including Tropics and Polar Circles.

Social Studies

• Rann of Kachchh and its geography
• Flamingo migration and breeding
• Environmental degradation and human impact on ecosystems
• Impact of dams and salinity changes
• Human Rights
• Fundamental Rights vs Directive Principles of State Policy
• Article 23 and forced labour
• Marginalisation of Adivasis
• Prevention of Atrocities Act, 1989
• Police powers, FIR, and detention
• Gender roles and the “double burden”
• Minority and Scheduled Community protections
• Wood’s Despatch and colonial education reforms
• Pre-Aryan theory and historical interpretations
• Peasant-warrior societies in Indian history
• Social reformers: Ram Mohan Roy, Jyotirao Phule, Periyar, Guru Nanak
• Non-Brahman Movement and its origins
• Indian National Movement and ideas of equality
• People’s supremacy over government
• Sangam literature
• Muvendars (Cholas, Cheras, Pandyas)
• Marathas and Shivaji’s kingdom
• Deshmukhs and Kunbi peasant-pastoral communities
• Ahom State and military-administrative system
• Peasant revolts, Indigo Revolt (1859)
• Company policies in the 18th century
• Sources of History (inscriptions, prashastis, archives)
• Relationship between religion and the state

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