Yes, most definetly. Other wise top pilots wouldn't be using sims to practice new moves, and they do.
There are a number of things the sim teaches you,

1 orientation of the model
2 the correct direction to move the stick without having to think about it. Easy when flying away from yourself, less easy when flying towards yourself or inverted.
3 The effect changes to the model have on its flying characteristics. My mate adjusted the centre of gravity of a model hawk on the sim for his turbine powered hawk, then set the model to match. Result, same characteristics.
4 When you crash on the sim, and you will, you can hit reset and try again while you know what you did wrong. In real life it could be weeks before you can fly again and by then you may have forgot what you did to cause the crash.
5 You can practise things, like autos on helis (engine out landings) before you try a real one. This gives you a much better chance of getting it right first time in real life.

RF G3.5 has a virtual flight instructor who teaches you new moves for both helis and planes.

One final thing, my mates 8 year old son flew a sim over the winter. When we took him to the airfield he soloed after 3 flights, not days, flights. The second ever landing he did was a deadstick.

So in summary, yes, you can take what you learn and use it at the field. I would still strongly recommend that you join a club and get help from an experienced modeller though. If for no other reason than to be shown safety proceedures. The props need respect.