Andrea Cordova, mother of two teens, is not the homework nag she used to be.

"I used to bug my kids all the time: 'Do you have homework? Did you finish it? Can I see it?' And of course, because they're teenagers, they'd say no," Cordova recalls with a laugh. "Now I just check the PIV."

That's the Parent Internet Viewer — a year-old service offered by all middle schools and high schools in the Bellevue School District.

It's similar to one Seattle Public Schools is debuting at some high schools and middle schools this fall, called The Source.

Bellevue's PIV lets parents go to their school Web site, key in their security code and view a record of their kids' work, including test scores, in-class assignment grades, homework records and upcoming assignments.

Newport High Principal Patty Siegwarth gives the PIV an A+ for offering faster feedback than is available from five-week progress reports, for making sure kids don't fall too far behind before someone notices and for boosting parent-child communication. "We used to have more parents asking teachers, 'Why did my child get a C in your class?' Now parents can talk directly to their kids: 'It looks like you missed an assignment on May 3. Oh, that was when you were sick. Did you forget to make that up?' "

In Bellevue teachers are required to post all grades and encouraged to also include assignments; Cordova estimates 90 percent of teachers do. In Seattle, any posting will be voluntary for teachers.

Bellevue parents credit PIV for easing their lot. Says Cordova: "Most of the time when I access the PIV, there's no problem — so I just keep my mouth shut about homework. It makes for a nicer ride home."