By Lily Hyerin Lee
Los Angeles Center for Enriched Studies
Grade 10___11/29/10 – On November 20, 2010, the fourth annual Korean History Quiz Contest was held and sponsored by the Korean Education Center in Los Angeles (KECLA) and the Korean School Association of America (KSAA). 25 teams signed up to participate in this contest totaling about 100 contestants. The audience included parents, family members, Korean school teachers, school principals, and friends.
“This Korean History Quiz Contest first started in 2007 and it was created to give an opportunity and chance to all middle and high school students to learn about Korean history,” Yonghan Keum, the president of KECLA, said.
After the greetings, preliminary rounds took place with five teams at a time. The team that won first place in each preliminary round went to the final round and the team that won second place was given another chance going to the consolation match. The team that won in the consolation match moved up to the final round and six teams were participating in the final round.
“I’m so nervous!” Denny Min, an eighth grader at Walter Reed Middle School who qualified for the consolation match, said. The prizes were awarded to first, second, and third places. The first place team received a scholarship of $1,000, the second place team received $600, and the third place team received $400.
“This involves a great deal of studying and time,” Lee, a parent of one of the contestants, said. Although this contest involved pressure and stress, many people seemed to have enjoyed this as well.
“This is actually fun,” Dawit Kim, an eighth grader at Walter Reed Middle School, said.
In the end, Baedel Korean School team won first place, Nasungyungrak Korean School team won second place, and Namgajoo Granada Hills Korean School team won third place.
Even though only three teams were chosen as winners, Keum emphasized the purpose and reward for every team. “The purpose of this Korean History Quiz Contest is not for the scholarship money or award, but the knowledge in our minds about our country’s history.”
