The way it is set up if you want to send you kid to private school you have to pay twice, once for the public school system, and oncve for your own school. This is just plain criminal.
My kids have gone to both private and public schools. I'll take the public schools anytime. Of course, we are in Oklahoma and the kids can pray, sing Christmas carols and are taught phonics, real math, and must diagram sentences.
Here in WI, we have open enrollment and we've taken advantage of it. In a nutshell it means that the money my home district taxes me for and spends to *educate* my child follows him to the school WE choose. We have chosen a Virtual Academy (THANK YOU BILL BENNETT) from another school district. The money leaves my pathetic district and goes to where the academy is based.
I'm in a VERY similar situation as the author of this article (gifted middle schooler and utterly clueless teachers) and am happy with the way our homeschooling experience is going thus far.