Final answer:
To find the proportion of students receiving a score within 77 points of the mean, calculate the z-scores for the lower and upper bounds and find the area under the normal curve between these z-scores. The proportion is approximately 0.8892.
Step-by-step explanation:
To calculate the proportion of students receiving a score within 77 points of the mean, we need to find the z-scores for the lower and upper bounds and find the area under the normal curve between these z-scores.
The z-score for the lower bound is calculated as:
z = (score - mean) / standard deviation
z = (321 - 77 - 321) / 42
z = -1.83
The z-score for the upper bound is calculated as:
z = (score + mean) / standard deviation
z = (477 - 321) / 42
z = 3.71
Using a standard normal table or a calculator, we can find the area under the curve between -1.83 and 3.71, which represents the proportion of students receiving a score within 77 points of the mean. The calculated proportion is approximately 0.8892.