Flexible, Distance and Online Learning (FDOL) is an open online course offered as an informal cross-institutional collaboration based on a postgraduate module in the context of teacher education in higher education. The second iteration, FDOL132, was offered in 2013 using a problem-based learning (PBL) design (FISh) to foster collaborative learning. How this was experienced by participants and how it affected learning within facilitated small groups are explored in this paper. Findings show that authentic learning in groups can be applied directly to practice, and greater flexibility and a focus on the process of collaborative learning has the potential to increase engagement and learning.