In this paper we reflect on our combined work in some of the most marginalised educational contexts in the Southern Hemisphere. We draw on the work of Bourdieu to frame the paper. We propose the working in marginalised education settings requires a particular habitus or way of being to be able to play the research game. Underpinning our approach is the South African construct of Ubuntu, which is very much about collaboration--I am because we are--so that there is a move away from doing research "on" participants and contexts to one which is very much about doing research "with" participants and contexts. We find Bourdieu's notion of game as a powerful construct to theorise ways of thinking about the field of educational research.