As for whether you should do EOL's in the R22, I think the answer has to be yes. A student/pilot doesn't want their first full down auto to be for real.
As an active FI in the States, I have to agree. I think a little before solo a student should be shown what a full down looks like in the R22 (or any helicopter) so that if they should have to autorotate they understand what the difference is between a full down and a power recovery.
Full down autos in the R22 are easy to do as long as you are willing to take some slide. Where people start thumping them down is when they try to get really short ground slides.