They have no right, however, to disrupt their child's school or monopolize a teacher's time. While they don't have an absolute right of access to classrooms, most schools allow them to visit classrooms for limited periods of time. Generally, parents are only bound by reasonable rules of visitation such as scheduling appointments ahead of time, not visiting during testing and not staying longer than a specified time. Many times teachers also prefer to have no more than one or two visitors at a time. Parents who fail to adhere to schools' visitation rules or who repeatedly cause disruptions can be restricted from the classroom altogether.
Parents can request that their child be assigned to or away from particular teachers or classes.
A school cannot unreasonably deny such a request, but it doesn't have to honor it if it would affect another student's assignment. Schools must also give parents access to any school records pertaining to their child. In addition, parents have a right to full information regarding their child's school activities, so communication from the school, particularly the child's classroom teacher, is essential. Teachers should also answer parents' specific questions in a reasonable manner via personal conferences, phone calls or notes sent home with the child. Knowing parents' rights helps teachers avoid many potential problems, but as important and delicate as the teacher-parent relationship is, there will always be a few occasionally.