  We compare the lower edge spectral fluctuations of the staggered lattice
Dirac operator for the Schwinger model with the predictions of chiral Random
Matrix Theory (chRMT). We verify their range of applicability, checking in
particular the role of non-trivial topological sectors and the flavor symmetry
of the staggered fermions for finite lattice spacing. Approaching the continuum
limit we indeed find clear signals for topological modes in the eigenvalue
spectrum. These findings indicate problems in the verification of the chRMT
predictions.
