Falling through the cracks. Crack-exposed children in the US public schools: an educational policy issue.

This paper discusses the research on crack-exposed children, their development and its implications for educational policy. It details the medical community's lack of consensus how, or if, crack-cocaine effects the cognitive development of children born pre-exposed to the drug. The article gives attention to some of the prevailing questions about crack-exposed children at school age and their educational needs. It addresses the question of whether crackexposed children are really doomed for failure, why educational policies and programmes designed specifically for crack children are necessary, and explores the implications for early intervention programmes and school-based programmes. At the heart of this paper lies a policy paradox. In the US one set of (health and social service) policies have targeted crack-exposed children and in so doing, have constructed the 'problem' as a public health issue. Other policies to address the 'crack-baby crisis' defined the 'problem' as a criminal issue, and thus punitive policies toward crack-using women became the focus of policy initiatives. This policy trajectory has thus masked and displaced the need for policy work in other areas; here, educational work. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]