Yes, novelty and connection certainly aid learning and memory retention, however, the more we facilitate the learner to make their own connections, work through the practical application of what they are being taught via scenarios, gamification or live examples, the more information they retain, the more they understand and the more likely it is that the learning will embed into day-to-day application. Its also helpful to space the learning and make it more bitesize – this allows the learner to reflect, digest and perhaps try out between sessions, which again aid learning.