Has anyone else gone through their education always being taught never to refer to oneself during academic writing?
Terms such as me, I, us or we are considered poor English. And yet they are not considered so by English professors. It seems to be some kind of bizarre convention agreed by scientists (at least in the fields i read in), one that must not be broken. If you must refer to yourself, use 'the author' and feel ashamed of yourself.
Had an argument with a colleague on this topic; to my mind, in the correct context, the use of such terms aids, not hinders, academic writing. Does anyone else support this convention, and if so explain why it is so?