Just nod your head

Schools back in session. It's my first week back since the winter break. We have some winter intensive courses. Some of mine are given fancy titles like "conversation" class. I get two teenage students who have only been learning English for two years, a first or second grade level word book, and am asked to create an environment of conversation and dialogue with my students. I look at the pages in the book, knowing that it is useless in helping me in a conversation class, so I ask my students about what they see in the pictures. I ask them to describe what they see. .......30 seconds later, no response. So I prompt them with English words and ask them to add to my description......no response. Some of my classes with the older kids are just painful. And then the director complains that I don't engage the kids enough, and adds that I need to explain "is" and "are", "a" and "an", which isn't conversation but grammar. So I'm being told to not use the book given to me to teach with, teach conversation and grammar at the same time, and I don't really know what to do. I know I can improve. I have no teaching background, and really no training from my directors, they just want me to figure it out on my own and somehow magically get my students to speak conversation English. In reality I wish they would just call it what it is, or at least give me materials I can use to teach the type of class they want. I feel like so much of this English education culture here is about study, study, study, just for the sake of studying. Not really creating a progressive learning environment, but pretending it is one. It's the same with the students. When I give report cards I can't really say if a student is doing poorly. I have to say the student is doing good so that the parents will keep them enrolled here. I'm sure the standards are higher in the public school system and at the University level here, but at private English hagwans it seems disorganized and ineffective.
After many similar situations thus far. I take it with a grain of salt, and do the best I can with what I have. It is impossible for me to try and rationalize with anyone, they just see it as a sign of disrespect. So I just nod my head and agree that it is my fault and I will try to do better. And on many levels I do and will keep trying to learn ways to get through to the students and make English fun and easier. I know I'm not perfect, and I accept that there are many things I can learn and improve on. I guess it's a matter of deciding how much energy to put into a job based on what you are getting paid and how many resources are provided to you.