ISC, ICSE top scorers rely on planning, persistence pays

PUNE: The CICSE examination for (Std X, ICSE) this year saw the boys in Maharashtra catching up with girls after lagging behind for years. Both recorded an identical pass percentage of 99.93%.In contrast, the ISC (Std XII) results continued to show girls ahead, with a pass percentage of 99.95%, surpassing boys, who recorded 99.79%. In Maharashtra, 30,393 students from 279 schools appeared for the ICSE examination, while 4,061 candidates from 81 schools did so for ISC.Across India, the ISC examination recorded an overall pass percentage of 99.13% and the ICSE examination recorded an overall pass percentage of 99.18%, with girls achieving a higher pass rate than boys in both categories.The state marginally outperformed the national average, maintaining its position among the better-performing regions.The distribution of top scores points to a widening base of high achievers. The 90–95% bracket rose to 7,942 candidates from 6,986 last year, while those scoring 95% and above saw a slight dip to 5,088 from 5,230 in 2025 — suggesting a redistribution within the top bands rather than any decline in performance.

DSK School principal Jayashree Mulay said the ICSE results reflect an outstanding academic performance at the national level, maintaining the tradition of excellence associated with CISCE.“The overall pass percentage remained above 99%, indicating consistent student achievement across the country. A notable feature of the 2026 results is the strong performance of students from the West region, which led zones in the overall success.

This highlights the growing academic competitiveness,” she added.The state’s pass percentage increased slightly from 99.8% in 2025 to 99.88% in 2026 for ISC. For ICSE, the pass percentage showed a marginal rise from 99.9% in 2025 to 99.93% in 2026. Among the ICSE students in Maharashtra, only 21 remained unqualified while in ISC the number was five.“Students found the physics paper difficult. In most other subjects, the MCQs were tricky with several students missing full marks.

Computer was by far the highest score along with English literature,” Amita Seth, principal at Wisdom World School in Hadapsar, said.Caroline Ross, principal of St Mary’s School, reiterated that students in her school did extremely well in English, history and geography. “Biology was another subject where many scored 100% marks. Overall, more students received slightly less than expected marks in mathematics but there are students who scored 100.

Physics was considered difficult by most students. However, overall students children are happy,” she added.Across Pune, many students scored over 90% marks in both ISC and ICSE exams. Principals said that though the question papers were more application-based, students managed to score well because they are good at practical application, not just rote learning.Ipsita Rodricks, director of Vidya Valley School, said 40 students scored 90% and above marks.

“All our toppers, excel in sports and participated in the student exchange programmes as well. They balanced academics and other aspects,” she added.Mustafa Ginwala (99.2%), Vivhaan Oswal (99%) and Ansh Mehta (99%) from The Bishop’s School, Camp scored above 99% in ISC. Mustafa said his hobbies include horse riding, go-karting, and watching motorsports. “The goal now is to get into a decent govt medical college,” he added.Krutika Jerry Vaz from Bishop’s Co-Ed School, Kalyaninagar, who scored 99.8% in ICSE, stayed away from social media. “ In my spare time, I research about machines. My mother is my role model. I will prepare for JEE and take up engineering,” she added.St Mary’s School topper Hibba Shaikh, who scored 99.4% in ICSE, said consistency and planning are key to success. “ I will enrol for an IB Diploma Program,” she said.

This story had continued from a page 23 story in the newspaper. For your reading convenience we have added it below.Maha boys catch up with girls in 2026 ICSE showThe CICSE examination for (Std X, ICSE) this year saw boys in Maharashtra catching up with girls after years. Both recorded an identical pass percentage of 99.93. The ISC (Std XII) results continued to show girls ahead, with a pass percentage of 99.95. The boys recorded 99.79% success. Across India, the ISC exam recorded a pass percentage of 99.13. The ICSE recorded an overall pass percentage of 99.18, with girls achieving a higher pass rate than boys in both categories.

The state marginally outperformed the national average, maintaining its position among the better-performing regions.