Identifying School Principal Candidates’ Perception on Teacher’s Appointment as School Principal

In order to establish a successful school, prospective school principals' perceptions are crucial. Perception has an effect on school quality because it impacts reaction and decision-making. The aim of this study was to understand prospective school principals' perceptions of the Ministry of Education and Culture Regulation Number 6 of 2018 concerning the Appointment of Teachers as School Principals, which was conducted using a quantitative approach through a survey of 77 prospective school principals from Central and East Java Provinces. The findings revealed that: the age of the prospective school principal does not have a significant effect on policy perceptions; the length of work as a prospective school principal teacher has no significant effect on policy perceptions; there is a significant difference between the principal candidates for primary school, junior high school and senior high school/vocational high school in perceiving policies; there is no significant difference between male and female principal candidates in their perception of the policy; there is no significant difference between prospective school principals based on tank (from III b to IV b) in perceiving policies; there is a significant difference between prospective school principals with bachelor's and master's degrees in perceiving policies; there is no significant difference between prospective school principals who have not and have read Ministry of Education and Culture Regulation No. 6 of 2018 in perceiving the policy; and that there is no significant difference between prospective school principals who have not and have specifically reviewed Ministry of Education and Culture Regulation No. 6 of 2018 in perceiving the policy.


INTRODUCTION
One of the government's key priorities in its efforts to improve human capital is enhancing education quality. The implementation of leadership in each educational unit seems to have a major effect on educational quality. In a transformative context, leadership is exemplified by a concept in which members and leaders work together to accomplish mutual goals (Demir, Kim, Current, & Jahnke, 2019). High-quality leadership is the most important prerequisite for a good school, according to this definition (Arhipova, Kokina, & Rauckiene-Michaelsson, 2018). One of the government's benevolences in improving the quality of education is manifested in the Regulation of the Minister of Education and Culture (Ministry of Education and Culture Regulation) Number 6 of 2018 concerning the assignment of teachers as school principals. The principal's primary responsibilities are outlined in this regulation. Among the main tasks listed are managerial duties, entrepreneurship development, and teacher and education staff supervision. The presence of guidelines regulating the principal's core duties shows that integrity is an absolute prerequisite for prospective school principals.
As the head of an educational entity, every school principal desire and strives for a decent school. However, in order to meet these goals, the principal must put forth a significant amount of effort in order to continue to develop their skills. The "Personal Success Model" was introduced by (Lavigne, 2018). The model demonstrates how critical coordination is for a school principal to enforce in order to construct a successful school. "The Personal Performance Model" illustrates how the urge to develop a successful school must be complemented with the principal's preferences and capabilities. Desire must always be greater than ability; if the principal has a strong desire, he/she may have to exert effort from inside himself/herself in order to fulfill predetermined objectives. Ability is a variable that must be continually enhanced and has emerged as the most important unifying factor in the realization of a good school. Self-competence will be established as a result of this capacity. A person's competence is a compilation of his or her intelligence, actions, and skills. Education and training (Diklat) are one of the ways to achieve competence (Wulandari, 2019). As a consequence, education and preparation may be considered a prerequisite that aligns the principal's skills with the expectations to be realized. Education is an integral part of improving the skills of future school principals. According to LP2KS results, prospective school principals who have completed training have strengthened their abilities in several fields, one of which is cognitive capacity.
According to the Oxford Advanced American Dictionary, perception refers to (1) how people pay attention to anything using their five senses; (2) the ability to comprehend the true nature of anything; and (3) thoughts, opinions, or individual images created as a result of seeing and experiencing something. Perception is a cognitive process in which a person selects, controls, and interprets each stimulus given by the environment. Perception is not a passive process; it can be influenced by an individual's learning, experience, and education (Succi & Canovi, 2020). Perception is the process of arranging sensory sensations and interpreting perceptions in the form of behaviors (Calvo & García, 2021). As a result, perception is defined as a cognitive process that helps people to comprehend their surroundings (Ali & Patnaik, 2018). The point from an expert's perspective is that each individual has a different stimulus processing such that different impressions can be generated even from the same object. The variations in object interpretation are affected by human awareness and degree of experience. This poses the hypothesis that prospective school principals have contradictory views of the implementation of Ministry of Education and Culture Regulation No. 6 in their working climate in 2018. Perception is an essential element in growing the abilities of potential school leaders.
Perceptions have an effect on prospective school principals' beliefs, emotions, encouragement, and actions, according to the perception phase diagram. This answer demonstrates a correlation between an individual's nature, ethics, actions, and competence (Elnaga, 2012). As a principal, having the correct perception is a critical quality and whether the understanding is accurate or not has consequences for the school's effectiveness. Perception may therefore be deemed an essential tool of leadership (Da'as & Zibenberg, 2021). Since individuals cannot control actions without understanding what they are doing, the principal's behavior reflects his/her view of the rules that govern his job (Hallinger et al., 2018). The causal interaction between attitudes, talents, expertise, and results, both of which can enable prospective school principals to become more knowledgeable (Harris et al., 2019). Competence is a human trait that distinguishes those who are superior from those who are mediocre, or those who are doing well from those who are not (Arhipova et al., 2018). Competence is a sequence of action behaviors that people need to carry out their responsibilities and roles in order to obtain the expected effects or outcomes (Andersen, 2018). In terms of decision-making, any decision reached by a leader is a critical component of organizational actions. Specific preferences, on the other hand, have a significant impact on how people make judgments and the nature of their choices (Saura, 2020). The basic substance in competence is shown by the motivations, characteristics, talents, and self-concept of information that enable people to perform their work. Similarly, professional leadership would enhance the level of performance and assist in the development of successful classrooms for potential school principals (Burhanuddin, Supriyanto, & Pramono Adi, 2018). (Boyatzis, 2008) clarifies the relationship between competence and performance in the "Model of Effective Job Performance". The work climate, task expectations, and human competencies are all interconnected in this model to produce successful results.
The concept "Model of Successful Job Efficiency" applies to how individuals' skills or competencies in the workplace are used to optimize job responsibilities. In the education setting, Ministry of Education and Culture Regulation Number 6 of 2018 defines the work duties of prospective school principals. Those are the prime duties of a prospective school principal. Meanwhile, integrity is a skill that must be possessed in order to support a function's core responsibilities. School principals' good success would have a beneficial influence on organizational growth (Puspitaningtyas, Imron, & Maisyaroh, 2020). Based on the expert explanations, it can be inferred that interpretation is a cognitive mechanism resulting from the learning outcomes of any encounter had, and that it is very influential for a leader in the decision-making process that will decide the course of the organization's progress. Similarly, aspiring school principals must be willing to comprehend federal rules governing school principals' primary responsibilities. Since the prospective principal's understanding of his responsibilities would have an impact on his attempts to build a good school.
The principal's leadership style represents effective leadership. One of the most common ways to learn about leadership behaviour is through leadership style (Berkovich, 2018). Successful leadership is shown by a leader's practice of five attributes: (1) modelling ways by demonstrating what action is demanded of participants, (2) demonstrating the ethos that is carried out in the community by demonstrating what is most respected in the organization, (3) demonstrating the motivations behind each decision taken, (4) presenting resources and decision-making skills to stakeholders, and (5) show genuine concern and offer celebration to achieve success (Heikonen et al., 2020). These five characteristics are strongly relational, and putting them into effect requires a conscious commitment on the part of the chief. This necessitates the representative paving the way for all of the group's participants to participate. Successful leadership is characterized as one that is substantially more followercentered (Hamilton, Forde, & McMahon, 2018). Based on the expert accounts, it can be inferred that successful leadership is affected by internal and external influences. Internal influences come from the participant himself/herself, which include the mechanism of increasing personal awareness and understanding that can form attitudes and actions as a foundation for decision-making. Meanwhile, additional influences emerge from the community, such as the adoption of good leadership practices.

MATERIALS AND METHODS
This research employed quantitative research methods through surveys approach. The variable measured in this study was the perception of prospective school principals regarding Ministry of Education and Culture Regulation Number 6 of 2018 concerning the Assignment of Teachers as School Principals. The instrument used was a closed questionnaire with a Likert scale (1 to 5). Perceptual aspects that were measured include (1) requirements for prospective school's principal candidates; (2) requirements for prospective SILN school's principal candidates; (3) requirements for candidates for school's principal candidates for special regions; (4) preparation of school's principal candidates; (5) the school's principal selection; (6) training for school's principal candidates; (7) school's principal appointment; (8) assignment of school's principal; (9) main duties of the school's principal; (10) school's principal professional development; (11) school's principal work performance appraisal, and (12) school's principal dismissal.The research population used was the school's principal candidates who attended the Education and Training of the Principal Candidates at the LPPKS. The research sample was 77 prospective school principal from East Java and Central Java which was determined by employing census sampling technique. Data processing was using descriptive and inferential statistics (non-parametric) included the correlation test with the Spearman formula and the difference test employed the Kruskal-Wallis test.

Result
Based on the results of the study, it is assumed that the profile of the respondents is as follows. The study respondents were 38 to 56 years of age, with a mean age of 48.91 years. Respondents were 43 (55.8%) prospective elementary school principals, 25 (32.5%) junior high school principal candidates, and Nine (11.7%) prospective senior high and vocational high school principals. Most of the respondents were male (39 or 50.6 percent) while the remaining (38 or 49.4 percent) were female. Respondents' length of duties as teachers ranged from 12 years to 34 years with an average of 21.95 years. The employment rank of the respondents varies from III b to IV b, with the highest frequency was group IV b (23 persons) and the lowest frequency was group III b. (1 person). The majority of respondents were undergraduate (53 or 68.8%), while the remaining were masters (24 people or 31.2 percent). Based on provincial origin, 68 people (88.3 percent) came from East Java and the remaining 9 (11.7 percent) came from Central Java.
It is predicted that their understanding of regulation would be informed by their experience reading and doing research on it. According to the results, the majority of respondents (75 individuals, or 97.4%) have read Ministry of Education and Culture Regulation Number 6 of 2018 concerning the Assignment of Teachers as School Principals, whereas the remaining 2.6 percent (2 people) have never read the regulation. A specific review of Ministry of Education and Culture Regulation Number 6 of 2018 has the potential to affect the views of future school principals about these regulations, in addition to reading. According to the results, the majority of respondents (45 people, or 58.4%) have performed a study on the regulation, either individually or with colleagues, while the remainder (32 people, or 41.6%) have never done so. The total average is 4.65 on a scale of 1 to 5, or 92.98 on a scale of 1 to 100, according to the weight mean score measurement.
The following is an overview of the perceptions of prospective school principals about Ministry of Education and Culture Regulation Number 6 of 2018 concerning the Assignment of Teachers as School Principals as a result of descriptive data analysis. The respondents' perception score ranges from 298 to 400, with an average of 371.86, a standard deviation of 28.186, and a variance of 794.466. According to the classification, 64 individuals, or 83.12 percent of respondents, have a very positive classification perception of Ministry of Education and Culture Regulation Number 6 of 2018 (score range 85-100 on a scale of 1-100). While the remaining 13 individuals, or 16.88% of respondents, have a favorable perception of the rule (score range 69-84 on a scale of 1-100). The item with the lowest perception, based on the review of each respondent's response points, is about the qualifications to become prospective school principals in a specific region, including having the lowest rank of Level I Junior Administrators, class III / b.
One of the factors that can affect policy preferences is age. In general, the more senior a prospective school principal teacher is, the more optimistic a policy is perceived and accepted. On the other hand, the younger they are, the more they are likely to be critical of a policy or regulation. The correlation coefficient between age and policy expectations (Ministry of Education and Culture Regulation No.6 of 2018) is 0.139 (very poor category) with a sig value. (2-tailed) of 0.228, according to the results of the correlation test. The association between age and policy interpretation is negligible since the sig. (2-tailed) is greater than 0.05. The level of a school where the teacher works can be a decisive factor in how a policy is interpreted. In general, the more relevant a policy is, the higher the standard of the school where the teacher works. The mean rank of policy perceptions based on the level of education where the teacher is allocated to SD is 33.31, SMP is 44.10, and SMA / SMK is 52.00, according to the Kruskal-Wallis test results. The Kruskal-Wallis value with an Asymp is known to be 7.135. The value of Sig is 0.028. Since the Asymp.Sig value is less than 0.05, it can be concluded that prospective primary, junior high, and high school or vocational school principals perceive policies differently (Ministry of Education and Culture Regulation No.6 of 2018). The understanding of a school principal towards the policy is indeed very necessary, this is reflected in the study of the principal's perception of the context of the overlapping accountability-innovation policy, and it is felt that the policy affects their role as a leader, it is true if there is a contradiction in a policy. This is the importance of understanding policies in order to strengthen and enrich the principal's self-insight in leading educational institutions (Watkins, Anthony, & Beard, 2020).
Male and female candidates may have different perspectives on policy. According to the Kruskal-Wallis test, the mean rank of policy expectations based on gender for males is 39.86, while for females it is 38.17. With an Asymp.Sig value of 0.740, the Kruskal-Wallis value is 0.110. Since the Asymp.Sig value is greater than 0.05, it can be concluded that there is no substantial difference in policy perception between male and female principal candidates (Ministry of Education and Culture Regulation No.6 of 2018). Perceptions of the policy may differ based on the rank of teachers of the prospective principal. The Kruskal-Wallis value is considered to be 1.218, with an Asymp. Sig value of 0.875, according to the Kruskal-Wallis test results. Since the Asymp.Sig value is greater than 0.05, it can be inferred that there is no substantial difference in policy interpretation between prospective school principals by rank (III b to IV b) (Ministry of Education and Culture Regulation No.6 of 2018).
The educational background of prospective school principal teachers may have an effect on their policy perceptions (Ministry of Education and Culture Regulation No.6 of 2018). According to the Kruskal-Wallis test results, the overall mean of policy perceptions based on prospective principal's educational backgrounds is 35.48 for undergraduate teachers and 46.77 for postgraduates. With an Asymp.Sig value of 0.040, the Kruskal-Wallis value is 4.218. Since the Asymp.Sig value is less than 0.05, it can be inferred that prospective school principals with undergraduate and master's degrees perceive policies differently (Ministry of Education and Culture Regulation No.6 of 2018). Reading experience of Ministry of Education and Culture Regulation No. 6 of 2018 can be a point of differentiation between prospective school principal teachers. According to the Kruskal-Wallis test results, the overall mean of policy perceptions based on the reading experience of Ministry of Education and Culture Regulation Number 6/218 for prospective school principals who have never read is 54.50 and prospective school principals who have read is 38.59. With an Asymp.Sig value of 0.320, the Kruskal-Wallis value is 0.988. Since the Asymp.Sig value is greater than 0.05, there is no discernible difference between prospective school principals who have not read Ministry of Education and Culture Regulation No. 6 of 2018 and those who have.
Experience conducting research on Ministry of Education and Culture Regulation No. 6 of 2018 can be a point of differentiation between prospective school principal teachers. The Kruskal-Wallis test shows that for prospective school principals who have never reviewed regulations, the overall mean of policy expectations based on the reading experience of Ministry of Education and Culture Regulation No. 6 of 218 is 32.30, and for prospective school principals who have reviewed regulations, the overall mean is 43.96. With an Asymp, the Kruskal-Wallis value is considered to be 5.327. The value of Sig is 0.021. Since the Asymp.Sig value is less than 0.05, there is no substantial difference between prospective school principals who have not reviewed Ministry of Education and Culture Regulation No. 6 of 2018 and those who have.

Discussion
The respondents are rationally divided into two groups based on the data provided by the compilers: younger adult respondents and older adult respondents. This is based on the developmental hypothesis that individuals between the ages of 20 and 46 are considered young adults, while those between the ages of 47 and 58 are considered old adults (Ting et al., 2018). If it is aligned with a perception, it may, of course, be related to decision-making based on feedback on the policy's perception. In a more mature brain, older adults can think more visionaries and conduct hypothesis research than younger adults, based on psychological dimensions of confronting new experiences (Worthy, Gorlick, Pacheco, Schnyer, & Maddox, 2011). When considering age and psychological research, this definitely makes it possible to create different attitudes between young adults and older adults. Although there are differences in gender patterns between men and women, there are also differences in perspective on gender patterns (Baquedano, Elawar, & Lizárraga, 2007). When evaluating a perception, men tend to be logical, realistic, and do not include the intuitive side, while women prefer to see things based on their own intuition mixed with rational systematic thought.
Reading, in turn, becomes a multidimensional learning opportunity that has an effect on one's potential awareness (Welcome & Meza, 2019). The theory is that there are variations in a person's reading capacity from age to age as a result of such. The better a person's ability for interpreting the knowledge obtained by the brain is, the more experienced and mature he or she is. Reading community is also influenced by inherent knowledge and intrinsic motivation (Nevo & Vaknin-Nusbaum, 2020). Other research also explains the importance of reading for a prospective school principal, which relates to theoretical and historical understanding by the principal as a policy actor that can inform the chronological analysis and structure of school policies, where the aim of these policies can be accepted by members in the school (Brown, 2021). As a result, it can be inferred that reading has an effect on how a policy is viewed. The majority, if not all, of the respondents read the Ministry of Education and Culture Regulation number 6 of 2018 extensively, and some even went so far as to review the regulation in detail. This is understandable because respondents anticipated a higher minimum rank threshold for being school principals. The criteria for prospective school principals, specifically obtaining an educator credential, were the statement items that received the most responses. In this study, prospective school principals' perceptions of Ministry of Education and Culture Regulation Number 6 of 2018 concerning the Assignment of Teachers as Principals were examined. These perceptions included requirements for school principals' candidates, requirements for school principals SILN candidates, requirements for school principals' candidates for special areas, preparation for school principals' candidates, school principals' selection, training for school principals' candidates, appointment of school principals, and assignment of school principals.
The best-perceived element was the selection of school principals. The weakest element, on the other hand, concerns the qualifications for prospective school principals in special regions. The majority of respondents' perceptions of these regulations can be classified as positive, indicating that they are indeed appropriate to all, regardless of status, age, or gender context, based on these results. Details such as this, of course, are strongly intertwined to the position of well-thought-out, detailed, and successful educational policies. As a result, it was discovered that education policy is a legal structure that can be used as a chart or a guide to carry out a mission (McGarr, O., & Johnston, 2019). As a result, the drafting team will conclude that the education policy in this segment has a high success rate because it can lead to a dominant positive perceptual response.
The appointment of school principals is the strongest part, and it can be argued that this is because the regulation's appointment does also offer accountability and effectiveness (Kim, 2018). As well as strong objectivity, such that the resulting interpretations are completely in alignment. Indeed, this is influenced by Indonesian culture, particularly the appointment of leaders in the past who appeared to obey political decisions. As a consequence, political judgment is a form of decision-making for an official or other role that is based on politics rather than expertise or capability (Glickman & Gordon, 2013). The standards for prospective school principals in special regions are the weakest factor. This may, of course, be rationally connected to the flow or systematics of choosing prospective school principals in special areas. Bureaucracy and a variety of other factors are perfect for influencing public opinion of the selection of prospective special education principals.
This demonstrates that there is no meaningful connection and that age has no bearing on the merits or rejection of a policy. In this regard, it is definitely paradoxical or not in line with other research that the more advanced a person's thought or thinking capacity is, the more critical and visionary it will be (Watkins et al., 2020). Despite the fact that this is an inconsistency in terms of current theory, it can be used to support the argument that policies implemented by competent authorities can be defined as complex and on target. Of course, if the strategy is not even in line with the goal, there will certainly be a slew of different interpretations with statistically significant correlations. As a consequence, it is vital to essentially keep a policy reinforcement or even further growth, so that the organizational process will achieve the best performance and outcome (Gençer, 2019).
It is also important to examine whether the amount of time spent as a teacher has an effect on policy attitudes (Ministry of Education and Culture Regulation No.6 of 2018). The correlation coefficient between the amount of time spent as a teacher and policy perceptions (Ministry of Education and Culture Regulation No.6 of 2018) is -0.102, according to the results of the correlation test (very weak category). According to these coefficients, the more they serve as a teacher, the more negative their policy views would be. The correlation between length of work as a teacher and expectations of policy (Ministry of Education and Culture Regulation No.6 of 2018) can be declared negligible due to the sig value. (2 tailed) of 0.376. This demonstrates that there is no substantial relationship between length of service as a teacher and merits or rejects-acceptance of a policy as a school principal. The amount of time someone works rationally defines how optimistic a policy's interpretation is. However, if the strategy is planned and enforced in a structured way, taking into account many important variables, it would not impact the majority of employees' expectations. In line with a statement from researcher,when the juridical regulations have been socialized in a structured manner, self-awareness from leader or employee will increase significantly, and it would not influence any majority of people on organization (Diem, Young, & Sampson, 2019).
The multiple test results indicate that only the level of school (place of employment) and educational qualification influence teacher perceptions of the document review. These expectations were also identified in a review of prospective school principals' perceptions of the O-Rekepsek application during the process of implementing the principal recruitment test; the findings obtained were the perceptions of high school principal applicants based on several factors, one of which was the application's usage and ease of comprehension (Arismunandar, H, & Ardiansyah, 2019). Therefore, there is no variation in gender, rank, or reading experience when determining the application's framework. It can be concluded that prospective school principals' perceptions are not different when viewed through the lens of their reading experience and the observations of Ministry of Education and Culture Regulation No.6 of 2018, as well as perceptions based on respondent descriptor variables (rank and gender).

CONCLUSION
The perception of prospective school principals regarding the Regulation of the Ministry of Education and Culture Number 6 of 2018 that the age of the prospective school principals does not have a significant effect on policy perceptions, while the length of work as prospective school teachers does not have a significant effect on policy perceptions. On the other hand, there is a significant difference between the principal candidates for SD, SMP, and SMA / SMK in perceived policies and there is no significant difference between male and female main candidates in their perceptions of the policy. In addition, there was no significant difference between prospective school principals based on their level of position (from III b to IV b) in perceived policies. However, there are significant differences between prospective principals with bachelor's and master's degrees in perceived policies. In addition, there is no significant difference between prospective school principals who have not and have read the Ministry of Education and Culture Regulation Number 6 of 2018 in perceiving the policy; and there is no significant difference between prospective school principals who have not and specifically reviewed the Ministry of Education and Culture Regulation No. 6/2018 in perceiving the policy. Therefore, this study, in general, can clearly find out that the understanding of prospective school principals (teachers) of regulations related to competence as school principals is very good and does not need to be viewed in terms of the individual variables inherent in each prospective school principal so that the impact obtained is that a teacher who is assigned the task of being a school principal through education and training and understanding the Ministry of Education and Culture Regulation Number 6 of 2018 will create a quality school with a comprehensive and comprehensive understanding of competence as a school principal.