New Delhi, March 17: The Central Board of Secondary Education is likely to reduce the number of difficult questions, and those that require long answers, in its question papers from next year following recurrent complaints about "tough" papers.

Board sources said that experts would be asked to review the current question paper "design", that is, the proportion of marks carried by the various kinds of questions: long or short, difficult or easy.

Complaints have been pouring in since the board changed the question pattern last year, apportioning more marks to the tougher questions that need to be worked out at length.

Pupils, parents and teachers have criticised this year's Class XII mathematics paper, which carried 35 marks' worth of difficult questions. Last year, both the mathematics and physics papers had attracted similar reactions.

"The question design will be referred to experts for a review," a board official said. But two school principals sounded a caution.

Ameeta Mulla Wattal, principal of Springdale School here, said question papers should retain a level of difficulty to enable students to make better career choices.

She suggested the board come up with two sets of mathematics papers, one for those seeking a career in engineering or science and the other for the rest of the examinees.

"All the learning achievement surveys suggest that most students are not doing well in mathematics. So, there could be two sets of questions," Wattal said.

Madhulika Sen, principal of Tagore International School, said there was nothing wrong with the current design except that a few questions demanded rather long answers.

"I think that if the board reduces the number of lengthy questions, the problem would be addressed," Sen said.

A board official agreed, saying the review of the question paper design would focus on ensuring that even the average student can finish answering all the questions within the stipulated three hours.

"Most of the feedback we have received shows that (many) students could not answer all the questions within the time," the official said.

A parent alleged that the accountancy paper too had been "lengthy". However, both the principals disagreed.

The government has promised an inquiry into allegations that the mathematics paper was too difficult and that questions had been leaked in Jharkhand.

Board sources said the subject expert committee was looking into the complaints about the paper's level of difficulty. The government has not asked for a new committee. The board has ruled out a question leak.