Students in several schools have been asking their teachers if an additional 30 minutes in the ICSE (Class X) math exam would mean a "more analytical" and a "lengthier" paper.
Several schools have already completed or are in the middle of their half-yearly exams and would only have the pre-board exams after this to test students for three hours.
"Students have been asking teachers if the paper would be lengthy. It is natural for students to feel frightened because math is a subject that creates a sense of phobia in them, especially for those who are not strong in the subject," said Terence Ireland, principal, St James' School.
The ICSE math exam will be a three-hour paper from 2025 instead of two-and-a-half hours, the Council for the Indian School Certificate Examinations (CISCE) said last week.
There will be no change in the number of questions and the format of the paper, the council said.
Several principals said that it is expected that the paper would be analytical and the additional time has to be utilised to "read the question paper thoroughly".
"A certain percentage of questions will be analytical and students will have to read the questions clearly to comprehend the hidden question. They cannot just see the figures and start solving or writing," said Seema Sapru, principal, The Heritage School.
Math teachers are telling students that the additional time should be utilised to reduce silly mistakes.
"We are telling students to revise and write the answers in the form that the question has asked them to. For example, often in a hurry, children end up leaving the answer in the fraction form instead of converting it to decibel," said Souvic Jati, math teacher and academic coordinator of Classes IX and X, The Heritage School.
However, several schools are unable to make a change in the duration of the paper in the half-yearly exam because either the exams are over or they are in between the exam and the question papers have been printed.
"It would have been better for us if this information had come in June," said Terence John, principal, Julien Day School Kalyani.