Reality-based education is a term I came up with several years ago, and it speaks to using the real worlds of the students to teach the subject matter. If a student is taught subject matter only with the thought of doing well in the course --to what end has that student learned the material? But when the student is shown how the subject of the course relates to his or her world of employment and personal life that two-dimensional course material becomes three-dimensional -- and the student has a much better chance of retaining the information because it has now touched beyond merely the mind, it has touched the student's life far beyond the course. And here's a suggestion: in a discussion thread have students talk about the subject of the course as it relates to their lives outside the course. Students love doing this, and you'll get more engagement and the students will have a better understanding of how the course relates to their lives.