This begs the question how can we, the community in the homework help area, help alleviate this problem identified by WBahn?WBahn stated in another thread:
I really hate how most of these education-oriented simulators teach bad practices by ignoring real world reality. Particularly since student increasingly get little or no hands on experience building actual circuits.
One thing I know we can do is enforce using standard values for resistors and capacitors from the EIA standard values. This can be accomplished two ways, have the TS find their own Exx charts or provide them one. I'd probably go with providing one to start them off on a good foot.
I can also see providing them application notes to reinforce any "real world" recommendations. I'd have not problem recommending something and then telling them to read the application note as to why I recommended it.
Get them to look at the specifications of the equipment they are using, for real world effects.
Granted even all the suggestions to the simulator still can not replace "building" the circuit, but hopefully it will translate to fewer errors when the person builds the circuit. Hopefully associative learning takes hold and the builder will recall why certain things were recommended.
Like all tools, the simulators have limitations.