What I learned: authentic application is a spectrum, not a project type. I'd been treating it as "do a big project." The module sorts it by depth. Everyday scenarios, project-based challenges, simulated workplace, full work-based learning. Naming the rungs showed me where I have them and where I have gaps.
The gap it exposed: simulated workplace. The structured version, where students clock in, get hired, run as a company, and file reports, is a real method, not a vibe. I'd been skipping the middle and jumping straight from project to placement.
The line that stuck: reflection equals retention. The doing isn't where it lands. The thinking about the doing is. I under-build that part.
How I'll apply it: build a simulated-workplace structure to fill that middle rung. And make reflection a graded, non-optional step after every authentic scenario, not a nice-to-have tacked on at the end.
