Hyderabad: With the Dasara festive season fast approaching, schools across the state have been directed to complete their Formative Assessment - 2 (FA-2) examinations before the Dasara vacation kicks in on September 21. The State Department of School Education on Monday issued directives, apart from notifying Dasara holidays, to ensure that students transition smoothly to the next phase of the academic calendar without disruption.

Schools have been granted a 13-day Dasara holiday till October 3 and they will reopen on October 4. If students skip school on October 4, which is a Saturday, they can extend their vacation by two days and rejoin the classwork on Monday October 6.

Junior colleges have got an eight-day holiday, including Sundays, till October 5, with reopening scheduled for October 6. Following the holidays, school students will face their first major academic challenge of the year. That is, the Summative Assessment - 1 (SA-1) exams.

Scheduled from October 24 to October 31, 2025, these exams will assess students’ cumulative learning from the first half of the academic year. Results are expected to be released by November 6, allowing schools to evaluate performance and adjust instructional strategies accordingly.

In the case of Junior Colleges, students will have a slightly extended preparation window after the holidays, with their Half-Yearly Examinations slated for November 10 to November 15, 2025.