Why Countries Need To Make Sure Their Kids Learn To Play Nice

What does helping a 3-year-old control her temper tantrums have to do with reducing global poverty? Quite a lot, says Dana McCoy.

A professor at the Harvard Graduate School of Education, McCoy is lead author of a study that offers a rare look at how well toddlers across the world's 132 low- and middle-income countries are mastering five core skills — including maintaining attention, following simple directions, getting along with others and controlling aggressive behavior like kicking and hitting.

The study's finding: About one out of three kids age 3 or 4 — accounting for 80 million children — are failing to reach at least one of these developmental milestones....

Read more at NPR.