Digital Publishing as a Transformative Medium for Writing Instruction: Enhancing Students' Writing Competence and Digital Literacy through the Kompasiana Platform

Abstract

Digital technology transformation has encouraged changes in writing instruction practices in higher education from conventional models focused on submitting assignments to lecturers toward publishing written works in digital spaces accessible to wider audiences. This study aims to describe the utilization of the Kompasiana platform as a medium for writing instruction and to analyze its contribution to strengthening students’ writing competence and digital literacy. The study employed a qualitative descriptive approach involving students of the Indonesian Language and Literature Education Program who enrolled in the Indonesian Language and Literature Writing course during the 2024/2025 and 2025/2026 academic years. Data were collected through document analysis of students’ opinion articles published on the Kompasiana platform, classroom observations, and interviews. The findings indicate that digital publication functions not only as a medium for submitting assignments but also transforms students’ orientation from writing for assessment to writing for public audience. This transformation encourages improvements in argument quality, language accuracy, awareness of digital publication ethics, and students’ motivation to produce works suitable for public readership. The novelty of this study lies in the conceptualization of digital publication as a form of authentic writing instruction that connects academic activities with the digital public sphere. The findings suggest that the involvement of real audiences is an important factor in strengthening students’ writing competence and digital literacy. Theoretically, this study proposes an authentic writing instruction model based on digital publication that positions publication as a means of transforming writing instruction from an assignment-oriented practice into an audience-oriented practice.