In 2016, a Midwestern state legislature passed the Read by Grade Three law that mandates students who are not proficient readers at the end of third grade to repeat the third grade. The problem is that teachers struggle with implementing effective instructional interventions, and they acknowledge their lack of experience with effective interventions and instructional approaches. The purpose of this basic qualitative study was to explore elementary reading teachers' pedagogy to understand the barriers to improving students' reading comprehension skills for students reading below grade level. The conceptual framework guiding this basic qualitative study included Vygotsky's zone of proximal development and Knowles's theory of adult learning andragogy. This study was guided by two research questions that address the instructional practices reading teachers use for elementary students struggling to improve their reading skills, and how reading teachers collaborate and share strategies for improving reading outcomes for students reading below grade level. Data from semi structured interviews with 10 first-and second grade reading teachers were collected and analyzed using Level 1 and Level 2 coding of field data to identify codes, patterns, and categories. The results of this study indicated professional development is paramount in helping struggling readers by empowering teachers with knowledge and skills, fostering collaboration, and improving student academic outcomes to promote positive societal progress by motivating educational leaders to offer tailored professional development programs that support elementary school reading teachers. However, further exploration is recommended on the effectiveness of differentiated instruction approaches within professional development programs. [The dissertation citations contained here are published with the permission of ProQuest LLC. Further reproduction is prohibited without permission. Copies of dissertations may be obtained by Telephone (800) 1-800-521-0600. Web page: http://bibliotheek.ehb.be:2222/en-US/products/dissertations/individuals.shtml.]