The fundamental problem is the way engine failures are taught. The PFL always seems exercise starts with a sudden and total engine failure. In the real world having a perfectly running engine suddenly totally stop without warning is the least likely scenario. You are much more likely to either have a rough running engine or a partial loss of power, or some warning the engine will fail soon if you are paying attention.
IMO the cause check is the most neglected part of force landing training. At least 2/3rds of all power losses are directly caused by the actions or inactions of the pilot. Making sure all students has an organized procedure to restore power would IMO significantly reduce the number of wrecked airplanes. Unfortunately the restoration of power is usually glossed over because you get all the points for flying the power off forced landing procedure. This is negative training because the student knows they will never get power back when the instructor pulls back the throttle and so they just do a quick mumble through the checks and then concentrate on flying the airplane
When I teach the forced landing exercise I always do a couple as partial power exercises. The first I will pull the power back to just enough to maintain level flight at a safe airspeed. After the cause check this then becomes a pilot decision making exercise. I deliberately set it up that so the airplane can safely return to base with a route that will always ensure a suitable field is in range. The next one will be a power reduction below the power required for level flight. Again after the cause check the pilot decision making becomes how do I use the residual power to improve the odds for the forced approach.