The idea of the secret view is "security by obscurity", ie. it allows a way to provide access to a view without people having to log in, but while still not comprimising the privacy of a student's work. That is why it is called a 'secret' url. The problem with making it short/easier, would be that it would also be easier for somebody to guess urls and access views they are not supposed to.
I guess a better 'parent friendly' approach is for the parents to have logins and the students can then share the views with them - but that also comes with its own set of problems

Glen