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In CBSE schools, Class 9 science practicals count towards internal assessment marks, so a school move now deserves a careful visit.
What should you check before the school visit?
If the school is affiliated to CBSE, much of the basic information is already public. Under a CBSE notification of March 2021, every affiliated school must upload a Mandatory Public Disclosure (Appendix IX) at a prominent place on its website.
That page lists the last three years of board results (Class 10, and Class 12 where the school has it), with the number of students registered, the number who passed and the pass percentage. It also lists the number and size of laboratories, the teacher-section ratio, and details of the special educator and the counsellor and wellness teacher.
Blank rows or old years become your first questions. ICSE and state board schools follow their own rules, so ask them for the same information directly.
What questions should you ask about science labs?
CBSE's affiliation bye-laws on physical infrastructure set a minimum science laboratory size of 9 m by 6 m (about 600 sq ft), composite for the secondary classes and fully equipped. The same chapter asks for a separate mathematics laboratory at least the size of a classroom. What matters more is how often your child stands at a bench.
That time counts for marks. In CBSE's Class 9 science syllabus for 2026-27, the annual exam carries 80 marks and internal assessment 20, of which 5 marks are for subject enrichment through practical work. The syllabus lists 13 experiments and says practicals should run alongside the theory they belong to.
Ask:
How many lab periods does a Class 9 section get each week, and are they fixed in the timetable?
Do students do the experiments themselves, or watch a teacher demonstrate?
How many students share one set of apparatus?
Will the school offer Science at Advanced Level, which CBSE's 2026-27 Class 9 curriculum lists alongside Science?
Can we see the lab now, not just on the tour route?
If practical time is thin, the Fermi Simulation Lab has interactive simulations for ideas that are easier to see than to read. They add to bench work; they do not replace the practicals the syllabus lists.
How do you read a school's board results?
A pass percentage alone says little, so look at all three years and the batch sizes behind them.
A worked example: School A shows a perfect pass rate from a small batch; School B a slightly lower rate from a much larger one. Before you prefer School A, ask both how many students were in Class 9 two years earlier. If a batch shrank sharply before the board year, ask why.
Ask:
How many students were in Class 9 two years ago, and how many sat the Class 10 board exam?
What happens when a student struggles in Class 9: extra classes, a parent meeting, or advice to leave?
After a weak year in one subject, what did the school change?
Who supports students when they struggle?
CBSE's norms for affiliation require every secondary and senior secondary school to appoint a full-time Counsellor and Wellness Teacher, with a part-time appointment allowed only where Classes 9 to 12 have fewer than 300 students. The same chapter asks every such school to appoint a full-time special educator. Both should be named on the disclosure page.
Ask:
How does a student book time with the counsellor, and is it private?
What happens in a new student's first month: a buddy, a check-in, a class teacher who follows up?
How will you tell us early if marks or attendance slip?
Settling in socially takes time too; our guide on what helps when a child has no friends yet at a new school covers the first weeks. If your child stays low or anxious through the move, talk to a doctor or a qualified counsellor. Tele MANAS, the government's free mental health helpline, is on 14416.
How do you compare two schools after visiting?
A script for the visit: "We're considering a move for Class 9. Could we see the science lab during a class, and how many students sat the Class 10 boards compared with Class 9 two years before?"
Then score each school 0, 1 or 2 on five points:
Disclosure page complete and current
Weekly hands-on lab time for every Class 9 student
Results explained with batch sizes, not just percentages
Counsellor and special educator in place and reachable
A clear plan for new students' first month
Keep fees and travel beside the score. For the final call, see how to choose between two schools for admission, and check the paperwork in what parents should check at CBSE Class 9 registration.
A move can also leave gaps, such as a chapter the old school skipped. Fermi's AI tutor can work out what your child already knows and build a plan for the session, so the first weeks start with the real gaps rather than a guess.
