<![CDATA[The digital age, educational management increasingly depends not only on technology adoption but also on frontline educators' metacognitive capacity to monitor, regulate, and adapt their practice under conditions of uncertainty. This study examines this capacity through an in-depth analysis of Special Companion Teachers (Guru Pendamping Khusus/GPK) who realise inclusive education rights for early childhood learners with autism spectrum disorder at PAUD Terpadu Anak Saleh Malang, an exemplary inclusive institution at the regional level. Employing Permendikbudristek No. 48 of 2023 on Reasonable Accommodation for Students with Disabilities alongside metacognitive and reflective-practice frameworks as an analytical lens, this research constructs a comprehensive understanding of how self-monitoring, self-regulation, and digitally mediated coordination shape policy implementation at the micro level. A qualitative approach with an intrinsic case study design was applied through data triangulation encompassing semi-structured interviews, field observations, and documentary analysis. Findings indicate that GPK function as street-level bureaucrats whose effectiveness as educational managers rests on four interrelated dimensions: (1) systematic pre-learning commitment grounded in multidisciplinary collaboration and distributed leadership for Individual Learning Programme (ILP) development; (2) metacognitive self-regulation, evidenced through real-time monitoring of children's emotional escalation cues and iterative revision of intervention strategies; (3) pedagogical competence expressed through tactile learning media engineering, instructional differentiation, and digitally supported progress tracking; and (4) digitally enabled communication partnership management, particularly the use of daily logbooks and instant-messaging platforms to sustain school-family intervention continuity in near real time. The study also identifies two structural issues requiring urgent management and policy intervention: formal qualification gaps among non-special education GPK and parental fiscal unaffordability of inclusive operational costs in private early childhood institutions. The findings offer implications for transformative educational leadership and digital-age management practice, and policy recommendations are directed to the Ministry of Education and regional governments to establish formal GPK certification pathways, metacognitive-oriented professional development, and subsidy mechanisms for private inclusive PAUD operational costs.]]>
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