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TheFutures teacherStudies is a discipline that explores potential, probable, and preferred futures, employing diverse and imaginative methodologies to do so. One such method is the Polak Game, a research tool used to assess both the essence of optimism/pessimism and the influence thereof, applied not only in Futures Studies but also across various fields including Education. This game, employing a 2x2 matrix to capture participants' perspectives on the future, has aseen responsibleextensive societaluse rolein thatthese impliesdomains. professionalOur expertisestudy aimed to investigate how current university students of Philology and desirableEducation traits.in InSerbia modernand education,Croatia perceive the future of education. The methodology involved students completing an online questionnaire featuring the Polak Game, alongside open-ended questions regarding their metaphors for the future of education and their opinions on its current state. Additionally, students rated their desire to work as teachers arein expectedschools on a scale from 1 to possess professional competencies and expertise that represent a symbiosis of certain components, whereas the European Standards also imply their high competency and professionalism. The question of standardization of teaching competencies is part of the modern paradigm of professional development. Considering that, the paper critically examines the theoretical approach to teaching competencies, whereas the research part is focused on examining these values by students, future teachers.10. The sample comprised undergraduate204 students (122 from Serbia and 82 from Croatia). Results indicated a predominantly essence-pessimistic view of the Facultyeducational future among Serbian students (81%), though less pronounced in the Croatian sample (54.9%). Conversely, the level of Educationinfluence-optimism was similar in Užice.both Thegroups scaling(79.5% techniquein andSerbia, an74.4% assessmentin scaleCroatia), developedsuggesting forthat thedespite purposesdiffering levels of this research were used. The results show which competencies are valued as priorities by future teachers, and which are valued the least. Prioritization or a poor evaluation of certain competencies can indicate a positive attitude and expectations ofessence-pessimism/optimism, students in regardboth tocountries them,harbor andan asoptimistic such,outlook be a good indicator ofregarding their developmentown during studies, whereas less valued competencies can indicate ignorance about them, or an attitude that shows said competencies are not necessary for the teaching profession. The quality of evaluation of teaching competencies by the students-respondents is a significant starting point for the development of study programs. Pedagogical implications of this research can help improve study programs focusedimpact on the outcomesfuture thatof supporteducation. Notably, students from both Croatian and Serbian faculties of education expressed a strong desire to work in schools (scoring an average of 9 on a 1-10 scale), whereas Serbian philology students exhibited less enthusiasm (with an average score of 6). The metaphors chosen by students to characterize their views on the developmentfuture of competencieseducation necessarywere forfound modernto teachers.align with their respective optimism/pessimism paradigms and will be detailed in the presentation.
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