The National Cyber Olympiad (NCO) is a competition for students in grades 1 to 10 across the nation. The exam is organised by the Science Olympiad Foundation (SOF). It is a well-known olympiad test that emphasises computational and reasoning ability in the same way the previous olympiad exams did. The purpose of the test is to help pupils develop their mental capacity, logical reasoning abilities, and analytical reasoning abilities. The National Cyber Olympiad is a single-level exam. The SOF organisation usually holds the NCO Exam in December or January.
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Highlights of the Examination
The National Cyber Olympiad is a cyber security competition for students in grades 1 to 10. The major purpose of the exam is to strengthen the knowledge of youth on internet security and computer skills, as well as to provide a platform for them to upgrade their skills by learning more about computers and information technology. Depending on their classes, students of different ages can take the exam. Listed below are a few of the examination’s goals.
- Awareness of cyber security among students should be stimulated.
- Beginning in primary school, improving students’ computer skills and knowledge.
- Students will be trained with the technological abilities they require in today’s digital environment.
Exam Pattern
The NCO test is divided into three parts.
- Section I contains questions about patterns, series, and classifications for students in grades 1 to 5. Section I addresses combined verbal and nonverbal cognitive questions for students from grades 6 to 10.
- Section II contains topics about computers, information technology, and technological breakthroughs.
- Section III deals with higher-order thinking skills questions. The topic is the same in every grade, but the degree of difficulty varies and keeps rising.
The question paper includes 35 objective-type questions for Classes 1 to 4 and 50 objective-type questions for Classes 5 to 10, for a duration of 1 hour.
The exam pattern for Class 8 is shown in the table below.
Class / Grade |
Section |
Number of questions |
Marks per question |
Total marks |
Grade 8 |
Section 1 |
10 |
1 |
10 |
Section 2 |
35 |
1 |
35 |
|
Section 3 |
5 |
3 |
15 |
|
Grand Total |
50 |
60 |
Syllabus for Class 8
The SOF NCO Olympiad follows the syllabus of major educational boards, including CBSE, ICSE, State Board, and others. In addition to the syllabi of these boards, the intellectual functioning of the students is also considered in creating the curriculum. The exam emphasises logical reasoning and mathematical aptitude, which are necessary for the field of computer technology. Let’s take a look at the outline of the course. The following are the concepts, topics, and principles that students must comprehend to pass the exam.
The eighth-grade curriculum is listed below.
Grade VIII
Section I (Logical Reasoning) |
Section II (Computer & IT) |
HOTS |
Reasoning: Verbal and non-verbal reasoning. |
|
High-order thinking skills questions based on Section II |
Any eighth-grade curriculum textbook that includes the above-mentioned topics and concepts is suitable for study. Students can learn more about test patterns and levels of difficulty by visiting the official website, which also includes the NCO class 8 syllabus. Students’ writing and time management skills improve when they solve sample papers.
Frequently Asked Questions on NCO 2021
What is the duration of the NCO exam ?
Where can the student get the sample papers for the NCO exam?
Which subjects are included in the NCO exam?
What is the examination pattern?
Section I contains questions about patterns, series, and classifications for students in grades 1 to 5. Section I addresses combined verbal and nonverbal cognitive issues for students from grades 6 to 10.
Second section contains topics about computers, information technology, and technological breakthroughs.
Third section deals with higher-order cognitive questions. The topic is the same in every grade, but the degree of difficulty differs and keeps increasing.
The question paper includes 35 objective-type questions (Multiple-choice) for Classes 1 to 4 and 50 objective-type (Multiple-choice) questions for Classes 5 to 10. The total duration of the exam is 1 hour.