Way to go: Lee’s advice for students looking to excel in history is to find the learning method that best helps them absorb information.
DID you know that Cleopatra was Greek – not Egyptian – despite ruling over Egypt? Or that the Tang Dynasty of China fought a battle against the Abbasid Caliphate?
Such historical nuggets may not be familiar to many, but they are facts at Lee Ker Zack’s fingertips, ready to be shared at any given time.
“What I find interesting about history is how it resembles a story of sorts. At other times, it’s like a giant game, such as Risk or Monopoly, but with the stakes being life or death – an entire way of life,” he told StarEdu.
The 18-year-old’s passion for history runs deep. He has spent over a decade “watching loads of documentaries, docuseries and historical dramas, as well as reading” to refine his historical knowledge.
“Participating in my school’s History Bee and Bowl Club and taking the American education system’s Advanced Placement World History: Modern – scoring a 5/5, the highest score, on the exam – also solidified my interest,” shared the Dalat International School, Penang, student, who is also a participant of The Star’s BRATs Young Journalist Programme.
Recently, Lee’s historical prowess saw him emerge as the champion at the Online Winter History Bee, held as part of the International History Bee & Bowl Asian Division for Varsity students.
The outing on Jan 5 was his first international history competition, he said.
“It felt surreal to win.
“Since I had never joined a history competition of this calibre before, I wanted to push myself to see how far my knowledge could take me.
“Having won this competition, I now qualify for the 2025 International Academic Competitions Asian Championships in Khao Lak, Thailand, in June and the 2025 International History Olympiad in Paris, France, in July,” he said, while expressing his hope of securing a scholarship for the trip to France.
Lee’s advice for students looking to excel in history is to find the learning method that best helps them absorb information.
“It can be reading or listening to podcasts, for example. Don’t limit yourself to what studying history should look like,” he said.
Reflecting on his journey, he shared that his interest in history was first piqued when he was about 10, while watching a video about Hearts of Iron IV, a World War II strategy video game where players get to control nations.
“To a very strong-willed person like me, the thought of leading a nation to steer the course of history for the better was very interesting.
“I was interested not only in the ‘lore’ behind the real world, but also in the strategies of humanity’s greatest minds, especially their wily solutions to the perilous problems they faced,” he said.
Lee added that there are life lessons to gain from studying history.
“What fascinates me about history is how paradoxical it can be. It shows you the brightest and dullest of minds, and how their decisions can lead to golden or dark ages.
“It tells the stories of minds that faced seemingly unsolvable issues or remarkably easy-to-fix situations, and how they overcame those odds – or were overcome by them.
“It’s the story of a thousand successes and failures, from which we would all do good to learn,” he noted.
Citing an example, Lee shared that Augustus – the first emperor of Rome, who was only 19 when he began his ascent to power – was on the verge of defeat many times, but because he had loyal friends like Agrippa and kept a level head, he pulled through.
“In everyone lies the power to succeed, sometimes in spite of the environment around us,” he asserted.
Looking ahead, Lee hopes to continue participating in history competitions and engaging in “history-adjacent” activities, such as volunteering at a museum, taking on law internships, and working with non-governmental organisations.
To students entering competitions, he had this to say: “Believe in yourself fully, which will allow you to not hold back. Once a competition is over, it’s over – seize the win while you still can.”
Hao Yan, 18, a student in Selangor, is a participant of the BRATs Young Journalist Programme run by The Star’s Newspaper-in-Education (Star-NiE) team. For updates on the BRATs programme, go to facebook.com/niebrats.
